The Inside
by SharinganAnbuSakura
Summary: The best way to corrupt is to start from within. Warning: Eventually on the road to darkness.
1. Prologue

**_Title: The Inside  
Anime: Naruto Shippuden  
Summary: The best way to corrupt is to start from within.  
Main Characters: N/A  
Progress: Prologue_**

**A/N: This is another new story that's been stuck in my head lately. And since I've been lacking in most of my stories, I decided to post the prologue for this. After all, aside from the latest chapter of A True Cherry Blossom Warrior, I haven't posted anything in over a year. In my opinion, this is really disappointing. However, this should make up for maybe…5 minutes? ;)**

**Anyways, I see some real potential in this story. I really do have a good plot behind this. The story is basically made; I just have to fill in the details!!!**

**Regardless, I hope you enjoy!

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**

Prologue:

"Wake up." A feathery soft voice called out to her in the midst of her sleeping. The sound was so gentle and welcoming that she had no choice but to feel obliged to open her eyes. Even if it didn't sound familiar, a new friendly face was always inviting.

"Dear...Sakura." The voice remained gentle although it held a small tad of impatience and urgency. "I do believe its time to awaken from your sleep."

Her first instinct was to open her eyes. And, as a result, was blinded by the brightest shade of white light. It reminded her of the stories she had heard once, twice, probably more. The tales of unnatural light at the end of the long, dreaded tunnel of darkness, which was only traveled by dying individuals, came to mind. She was right at the end, the edge of the darkness -- a mere cliff. Sakura could do nothing but stare into the strong light that could drown sin, fear, or hesitation.

...Wait, what stories? Stories from whom?

A soft hand lightly brushed against her forehead. Sakura blinked several times, trying to make sense of anything, anything at all. But to no avail, she could not begin to understand. She felt her hair moved out of her face by that same hand. It moved tenderly against her skin as if it had known or thought touching it were a delicate process. Did she appear that fragile in one's mind?

That questioned irked her. Sakura could feel a strange, familiar nausea settle in her stomach. Wait. Her mind felt the need to rephrase that. Instead of nausea, she wanted to replace that word with unease. Unease described this feeling better because it created an urge in her to prove something.

Prove...what?

All she could agree on was that it was upsetting and she could feel her eyes blinking more rapidly than normal. Her body was trying to smooth away the moisture that gathered in her eyes.

But the haunting atmosphere was quickly forgotten when another hand, a hand with a much different texture, lightly squeezed her left hand. She could feel comfort and security in that hold. Unconsciously, Sakura lightly smiled, softly even. However, a strange crease in his hand...as if it had a small trench ready to be opened kept coming to mind. That was the only thing about the grasp that made her uncomfortable.

"Hey, kid, it's time to wipe the dreaminess out of your eyes." The second voice wasn't as deep as the first. It was a bit more distinct, easier to understand. By the sound of his voice, he sounded much more humorous, even light-hearted and more carefree. Her mind put together the image of an artist for some odd reason.

Sakura could have giggled at the thought, but since she felt that it wasn't appropriate, didn't. Still, by the strange, rougher texture of his hands -- Sakura's second guess was a construction worker who worked hard hours with cement or clay. Maybe rough, blistering tools even.

"Heavy sleeper, yeah?"

"She's awake." The response held a slight irritation that easily could be identified as annoyance or impatience. It was just barely present, barely existent, but Sakura knew for certain that she had heard it.

The girl blinked several more times, the light still treading over the line of unbearable. Dark figures were the only contrast to the white and were almost transparent. The darkness, no mattered how faded and foggy, had no defined shape. The people, which she had assumed by the closeness of their position, had faded undefined edges that would not fully shape them until she could see more. It made them disfigured and unknown.

Even though they seemed real enough, Sakura still was reminded how it all felt like a bizarre dream. A dream where all you can remember are mere glances that make no sense.

* * *

**A/N: Well, what did you think? More is on the way! We already have one character involved. Who else is to come? I'm sure most of you, if not all of you, have figured out one or two of them. **

**Have a nice week, everyone! Hope you enjoyed! **

**Until next update (hopefully soon),**

**~SharinganAnbuSakura**


	2. Chapter 1: Childhood Part 1

**Title: The Inside**  
**Anime: Naruto Shippuden**  
**Summary: The best way to corrupt is to start from within.**  
**Main Characters: Haruno Sakura (Age 15)**  
**Progress: ****Chapter One (Complete)**

* * *

_Sweet Dreams...Sweet Dreams..._

Chapter 1: Childhood - Part One

The first day that Sakura was able to open her eyes and see clearly, she found herself surrounded by unfamiliar individuals. When her emerald gaze scanned the room, an overwhelming amount of men with dark clothing surrounded the tiny bed that she rested on.

She felt terror fill her instantly.

The only light that filtered into the small room was from the hallway outside the room. The wooden door with a metal doorknob was ajar, allowing just enough light in for her eyes to make out the outlines of the men. Each of them were still, quiet, and watching her.

Their gazes on her made Sakura unconsciously shiver. She didn't know them and so far, she didn't like them.

For the first few minutes, she said nothing. Neither did they. Silence choked the room, drowning Sakura in a feeling that made her like a cornered animal. The atmosphere that embraced them was so cold and dark. She couldn't help the chills that ran down her spine.

Her wide eyes watched them, watching for any movement. All of the men held a threatening presence. Sakura could honestly believe if one of them moved, she might jump out of her skin...or worse yet, attack.

_Attack_...

As her eyes adjusted, the pink haired girl made out the clothing that they wore. Even if the lighting was very dim, she could see red clouds encased by a white bordering over a black background. This bizarre, yet beautiful pattern adorned the cloaks. She wanted to convince herself that it was familiar to her, but couldn't grasp how or why it might be.

Her skin prickled with chills. Was it just her imagination, or was the temperature decreasing as time passed?

Finally, one of them spoke. She wasn't sure which one. The deep voice echoed around the room. The sudden, unexpected sound made her feel unbalanced. The darkness and light blurred as she swayed once, unable to establish her equilibrium once more.

"You're awake." There was no emotion in the voice. Whoever he was, he was just making a statement. It was a statement with no strings attached.

She didn't know how to respond. What was one to say to such a careless person? Sakura didn't know this man at all. There really were no strings attached. She didn't _have _a reason to reply.

One of the cloaked figures turned towards the others. The rest of them immediately focused their attention on him. Sakura assumed he was the leader. It was ironic. He was a head shorter than some of the bigger figures.

"There is no need for such a large crowd. Dismissed."

There was no response from any of his subordinates. Silently, each of them filed out. The dizziness that Sakura suffered from made her unable to count how many left. She barely noticed that one of the departing figures turned back to gaze at her. The only reason she noticed was because the quick flash of crimson that reflected the light from the outside.

Was the crimson a figment of her imagination? If not, what would reflect so brightly? A necklace? No, No. It had come from where the head was positioned. Piercings? Sakura mentally wanted to shake her head when her mind conjured up the thought of crimson eyes.

She was just being ridiculous. Sakura was almost grateful that the 'leader' interrupted her insane ideas.

"Do you know why you're here?" Sakura noticed how he remained in the shadows. She still couldn't make out his shape.

With difficulty, Sakura managed to shake her head. She really didn't know why she was here. Everything seemed so unfamiliar. It was scary, to be honest.

There was a moment of silence. Then, Sakura thought she saw him nod his head in response.

"Good night." The man quietly walked out. As his outline hit the light in the hallway, Sakura made out spiky short hair. She couldn't tell what color it was. However, she did feel accomplished for finally knowing something about one of them.

After all, it felt like the unknown group knew everything about her. Yet, she knew nothing about them. It was a disadvantage. It was totally unfair. Thankfully, she had something now. Something to encourage her to find out more about them.

Right as the door was closed; Sakura remembered what she had meant to ask him. There was a loud click to notify the person who closed the door that it was locked. The pink-haired girl on the other side had no chance of escaping the empty room.

With a quiet whisper, Sakura said, "Should I?"

* * *

Hours, days, weeks. She had no idea of time. All Sakura knew was the darkness of the room around her and the bed that she would occasionally use to sleep or sit on. Time stretched on into eternity.

She didn't have any more visitors. None of the cloaked figures came back. Sakura honestly wondered if she had been forgotten. She hadn't even tried the door that they had entered. Even in the darkness, she could feel it's tempting presence. But she would be a fool to try a locked door, wouldn't she?

Finally, one moment, Sakura had reached the point of desperation. She had to find out if the door was locked. With tentative steps, she crept from the bed towards the wall. She didn't like not knowing what was between her bed and the door. She kept thinking there were some hidden traps in the darkness, just waiting to devour her.

Her outstretched hand gently pressed against wood. She had found her destination without getting in trouble.

Wait, getting in trouble? Was she a child now? A child who had been punished and sought escape? Sakura pushed the thoughts away into the back of her mind.

Before she could think to reach for the doorknob, Sakura heard footsteps. Her heart started pounding hard against her chest. She could hear the blood rushing in her ears. Without much hesitation, she sprang away from the sound of footsteps and blindly raced towards her bed.

Unfortunately, Sakura crashed into the bed. Her knees ached as she struggled into the bed. She grabbed her pillow with one hand and threw the covers over her with the other. The noise of the _clang _rang in her ears. She feared that whoever was outside had heard the noise.

Right as she laid her head down, a sliver of light on the floor raced towards her bed. Sakura's eyes widened at the break in the darkness. The yellowish color attracted her eyes instantly.

The door creaked open slowly.

"Close your eyes."

She had heard the voice before. Sakura broke her trance on the light and obeyed. She didn't know why she didn't fight or argue. She just closed her eyes as she was told.

There was darkness for a short moment. Then, even behind closed eyelids, she could see the blinding light. It flooded the darkness out. Her eyes raced back and forth, disbelieving the darkness was gone. The darkness was all that she had come to know. In a sick way, she wished it would return.

"Open your eyes." Sakura almost jumped out of her skin. The voice was right next to her. It had moved close to her. Too close for comfort.

A few seconds passed and Sakura not obeyed. She felt like her space had been violated. This...This man had invaded her privacy.

"Sakura, yeah?" For some unknown reason, her eyes opened at the sound of her name. At first, the light was completely blinding as she had imagined it would be. However, when she tried to close her eyes, the man spoke again.

"No, no, you need to get used to it. Blink, yeah." Sakura squeezed her eyes shut because her eyes burned. Over time, she followed his advice. He was patient with her. He actually had to take a seat on the edge of the bed because it was taking her eyes so long to adjust.

When she was finally able to see, her eyes focused in on him. She didn't know why she didn't examine her room first. It had been bothering for the longest time. But now that she had this...this man in here too...Well, the details of the room didn't matter anymore.

Sakura first focused on the bright blue eye that shone like the blue sky she had seen once before. Her mind wanted to stop on where exactly she had seen such a color, but it let her keep observing the man instead.

Yellow bangs covered his other eye and most of the right side of his face. He had boyish features rather than manly ones. In fact, if she had seen him on the streets from afar, Sakura might have thought him to be a girl. Some of his long hair was up in a ponytail, after all.

Sakura managed an awkward smile. He didn't seem to mind her eyes going over him like a piece of art. He just smiled quietly, waiting patiently.

Finally, with a shaky intake of a breath, Sakura nodded.

"Good morning, yeah. Enjoy your dreams?" The blond-haired boy didn't seem much older than her. He seemed so young. He might have been in his twenties at most.

"Uhh..." Sakura didn't know what to say. What dreams? All she could remember was the darkness that had been so consuming. Didn't he want to ask her how she felt about that?

He extended a hand towards her, but at a safe distance. He was respecting her space. Her eyes moved towards the hand, noticing it was black. She glanced down at her own hand, which was a pale white. Sakura then realized he was wearing gloves. She glanced down at his other hand that was politely settled in his lap. It had a glove on too.

Still wearing the awkward smile, Sakura raised her hand to meet his. He grabbed her hand gently, shaking it once or twice.

"The name's Deidara. Nice to meet you finally, yeah."

Sakura nodded in reply, unsure of what to say. She was still stunned by how fast things were progressing. First, the blinding light, and then, Deidara. Was she dreaming _now_?

He suddenly stood once more. His cloak followed his every movement fluidly. It was as if it was attached to him. The sudden action almost frightened Sakura. She was not used to such fast movements yet. She was more comfortable with snail-pace things.

"I will be back with your breakfast in a moment." He paused as if he was going to say something more. Instead, he walked over to the wall on the left side of her bed. Before she could look over there, she heard the drawing of curtains. As her eyes snapped towards him, the feeling of more light entering the room touched her.

Sunshine entered the room. It held a strong presence as the natural light reached her bed.

Sakura's head swam with confusion. How had she not noticed the window before? Even at nighttime, there was some amount of light outside. There was the pale moon that shone down on Earth. Why hadn't she _seen_ that light?

Her head throbbed a few times. She would have seen the light through the curtains. As she looked at the royal purple curtains, she noticed how thin they seemed. Had it been a new moon last night? Had she dreamed about that eternal darkness? Surely, it hadn't been just a night that she had been trapped in here...

Deidara turned towards her. "Why do you look so confused? I know how kids your age like to sleep in, but this is ridiculous, yeah. You're not a bat." He then smiled, laughed for a bit, and exited the room.

Everything seemed surreal. Sakura sat up quickly, ignoring the dizzy feeling that came with it. Her eyes went back and forth, scanning the room. Furniture and decoration adorned the room. The walls were colored in a warm light brown with purple trim. The floor, as she had already known, was carpet, but colored off-white.

She hesitantly abandoned her bed and walked over to the window. A dark green line of trees met her gaze. Beyond that line of trees, Sakura could only see a blur of dark brown and green. If she had to guess, her room was next to a forest. In fact, the forest couldn't have been more than fifty meters away.

The distance of the forest was perfect. Not a single leaf threatened the bright, warm sunshine on her skin. She managed a smile as she quietly watched the outside world.

She had to admit she liked this change. However, Sakura kept feeling this nagging feeling at the back of her conscious mind. It was barely a nuisance. It wasn't that strong at all actually. It did nothing to disrupt this moment.

"Sakura, come over here, yeah!" Deidara appeared again, with a tray of pancakes and a cup. Sakura turned towards him, unaware of the smile that was on her face now. He set it down on a nightstand next to her bed. He patted the bed gently, waiting for her to join him.

As she left the window, the nagging thought left her. As far as her mind was concerned then, it had never existed.

Her mind was that of a child's. Moving from one thing to the next without much thought. Her attention span being relatively short.

The last thought that entered her mind as she ate pancakes was that last night had been a long, unusually dark night. It had scared her. Frightened her actually.

But everything was okay now.

Deidara was here.

* * *

**A/N: It's been forever since I've updated any stories. Just recently, I updated ATCBW. I was very proud of myself. In fact, I don't know where this chapter came from. I just sat down and started typing. Alas, a new chapter for this story as well! **

**I know this chapter is short. But, it is an update, is it not? **

**I hope everyone has enjoyed this chapter. I'm curious to see what people's opinions are about this story. Anyhow, there is more to come. My muse seems to have awakened once more. I won't make promises, but I can say you may be able to see another chapter coming soon. **

**Until next update,**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


	3. Chapter 1: Childhood Part 2

**The Inside**

**_Summary:__ The best way to corrupt is from within._**

**_Main Characters: Haruno Sakura (Age 15), Deidara (18)_**

**_Progress: Chapter One, Part Two_**

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_Sweet Dreams are made of..._

**Chapter 1: Childhood - Part Two**

"Sakura, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine. He's an artist like me, yeah."

The pink-haired girl glanced from her spot by the window. She had been admiring the feeling of the sunshine on her skin. She had been doing this ever since that one night where she felt so cold and alone. Sakura didn't think that Deidara understood why she had been so persistent about it the last few days.

Deidara peeked in through the slightly ajar door. It was a ritual of his to glance in first before walking in.

"Is that okay with you, Sakura?"

She stared at him for a moment in silence. Her eyes then shifted to the clay figures on the window sill. Several small, colorful clay animals rested there. Deidara had made them for her with his artistic skills. It was kind of amusing because he mainly specialized at making clay birds. He attempted a weasel, but it came out slightly deformed as if it hadn't been made as lovingly as the birds.

Nevertheless, Sakura appreciated the small gifts he had given her. He had told her that she would receive a new gift every day until the house that they lived in was fully renovated. Apparently, her room was safe, but most of the other sections of the house were not. Deidara had told her not to venture outside her room unless he was with her because it was too dangerous in the meantime.

She found it a bit absurd and unbelievable that her room was the only safe room in the house. If it was, why didn't Deidara stay with her?

"Does he make clay birds too? Or can he make something other than a bird?"

Sakura glanced at Deidara from the corner of her eye. She noticed his eyes narrow for a moment. It was so quick, however, that she wondered if she had seen anything at all. She had yet to see Deidara angry or frustrated.

"No. He does not specialize in clay art, yeah." Deidara then muttered something under his breath. Sakura tilted her head to the side.

"Did you say something?" After Sakura asked a question, Deidara leaned back so that his head was not in view. There was a moment of silence. Then the door swung open enough for Deidara and a red-haired man to walk inside.

"Yes, I just said that he did not specialize in clay art."

Sakura opened her mouth to argue, but suddenly felt overcome by drowsiness. Her head felt foggy for a moment. She could no longer recollect if Deidara had indeed said more. She put a hand to her forehead to try and compose herself.

"Oh." She mumbled more to herself than Deidara. Deidara gently touched her shoulder with his hand as he walked over.

"Are you okay?" He murmured in a concerned tone. For some reason, Sakura felt that he could have been sarcastic about it if he tried. She had felt this way until his hand fell upon her shoulder. The thought left her as soon as it had come.

"I-I think so. I just felt like I could sleep all of a sudden."

Deidara slightly smiled in response. He didn't bother saying anything. Instead, Deidara ushered the other man forward.

Sakura tried her best to ignore the drowsiness as she looked up at the red-haired man. He wore the same type of cloak as Deidara did. When her eyes met his, she felt a strange chill run down her spine. The reddish brown iris was so unique. She wondered if she had ever seen anything like it.

The eyes of the man made her almost uncomfortable. Moreover, his face seemed like it was set in stone. His mouth was frozen in an indifferent line. It was as if his eyes were the only feature of his face that was alive. As he watched her, the feeling of being watched by a doll struck her.

As if sensing her discomfort, the man's mouth turned upwards into a small smile.

"I'm sorry that I was staring. I just have never seen a human with pink hair before now." His voice was smooth and soft. "My name is Sasori."

Sakura stared for a moment at Sasori. His voice was like a gentle caress. It tried to wrap around her and ease her into letting him in. However, she couldn't forget the emotionless face from before. It haunted her more than she would have thought it would.

His arms shifted. She glanced down, noticing how his hands were hidden inside his cloak. He noticed this and smiled a little wider.

"Tell me, Sakura. Do you have an open mind?"

Without giving her time to answer, Sasori pulled his hands out of his cloak. She gasped in surprise. She didn't realize that she had flinched back.

Sasori flexed his fingers out, holding his hands above the ground as a small wooden figure dropped onto the floor. Sakura blinked a few times as she tried to register what he had done. Thin, clear strings fell from his finger tips down to the figure. As he moved his fingers, the figure moved as well.

She had to fight a smile when the small figure folded an arm across their chest and bowed towards her. Sakura was speechless as she laughed softly. The insecurity she had felt melted away.

"This is a puppet. You control everything one does by using your fingers." As Sasori spoke, his index finger and ring finger twitched slightly. The wooden puppet lifted it's head to face her. For the first time, she noticed how human like the puppet was. It had a smile and cheerful eyes carved into its face.

At that moment, she could have sworn that Deidara exhaled through his nose in annoyance.

Sakura dropped onto her knees in front of the puppet, reaching her hand out to it. Sasori made the puppet move in such a way that it offered its tiny hand to her. She shook the puppet's hand with her index finger and thumb gently with a giggle. It was absolutely ridiculous and she knew it as she looked up to smile at Deidara.

Deidara's lips trembled a bit. The corner of his mouth turned up slightly in a reluctant smile. She noticed that he gazed at her intensely as she smiled so widely at him. She must have looked like a fool or something. Regardless, Sakura turned back to Sasori as she stood up.

"That's really neat, Sasori." She murmured quietly.

Sasori snapped his wrist up in a quick, fluid motion. The puppet looked as if it had flexed its legs of its own accord and jumped into his hand. He nodded in agreement.

"Can I try?" She whispered excitedly.

Sasori used his free hand to put a hand on top of her head. She glanced up at him with her shining emerald eyes. He smiled and said, "Not today. I promise you will be able to try soon though."

Her eyes darkened a shade of green with dismay. She deflatedly nodded in understanding.

Sasori dropped his hand away from her and turned to move towards the door. "It was nice meeting you, Sakura. I'm sorry I can't stay any longer. I have to tend to other matters right now." He glanced at Deidara once before he left. Sakura barely noticed the silent message exchanged between them.

She went back to sitting on the window seat. Deidara followed her and sat down next to her. Sakura leaned her head against the window, staring outside blankly.

A few minutes of silence passed by.

Deidara finally turned to her after absently staring at the window seat. He stretched an arm out and placed a hand against the seat. With one fluid movement, he scooted closer to her. His arm grazed lightly against hers.

"Sakura." Her eyes slowly moved to the corner of her eyes to look at him. He was looking at her rather intensely. She wondered if he had something important to tell her. He didn't continue until she turned to look at him fully. He wanted her full attention.

"Do you like living here?" Sakura blinked a few times in surprise. Her immediate response to his question was to say,

"Of course I like it here. Why wouldn't I?" She said this without a second thought. Then, after she said it, Sakura was very quiet. She really did like living with Deidara. The only problem was that she didn't feel very...free. She felt limited to the very room that she was in.

Deidara leaned forward so that his face was a few inches from hers. Sakura raised an eyebrow at his closeness. Her cheeks heated slightly because of how uncomfortable it felt. An uncertainty arose within her as he looked into her soul with his blue eye. It suddenly struck her how worried she was that she might be punished for stepping out of line.

"I want you to be completely honest with me, Sakura. Are you positive that your happiness is fulfilled here?" As he said this, Sakura noticed how her back was pressed against the wall. She felt trapped like an animal in a corner.

Her reply came out simply and rather quietly. "I would like more freedom." Her statement held two different levels of meaning. On one hand, Sakura wanted to be able to venture outside and bathe in the sunlight as she felt the soft grass between her toes. On the other hand, she wanted to have breathing room. It felt as though Deidara was suffocating her by being so close.

However, as soon as the words left her mouth, Deidara leaned away. Suddenly, it felt like oxygen could fill her lungs again. With a shaky breath, Sakura nodded to confirm what she said.

Deidara glanced at her once before murmuring an apology. Sakura did not make a motion whether she accepted it or not. Another silence settled amongst them.

The pink-haired girl settled on gazing outside once more. She didn't have anything to say at the moment for she was deep in thought. Sakura honestly wondered if Deidara understood what she meant by wanting more freedom. Although, she quietly thought, she was simply happy that he had backed off from her.

Sakura began hoping that Deidara would leave for a while. She needed her space to think and register what had just happened. Her thoughts, however, were interrupted by a shadow that fell over her face.

Noticing the light change, Sakura refocused her gaze onto the shadow trail. She followed it up onto the window pane in front of her face. Her eyes widened and she screamed. With a swift, yet clumsy movement, Sakura pushed herself away from the window seat.

A giant white spider looked at her with beady black eyes. It stared at her, tapping its feet against the glass. The spider's head twitched back and forth several times as it watched her move behind her bed for protection.

Sakura was on her knees, peering over the top of her bed with cautious eyes. She had never seen such a large spider in her life. It had to be the length of half a foot at least. Her eyes quickly darted towards Deidara, then back at the spider. Wasn't Deidara afraid of the creature?

Deidara glanced at her and had to fight off a smile. He then turned towards the spider and lightly tapped the glass with the palm of his hand several times. The spider's body shook once or twice before it started crawling out of sight. At that point in time, Sakura realized the spider had been outside rather than inside the room.

Sakura did not move from her crouched position. Her hands gripped the bed sheets in a death grip. She didn't release them until Deidara walked over to her. As soon as he was a few feet from her, Sakura seemed to jump into his arms.

His arms wrapped around her in a warm, protective embrace. He brought her close to him and allowed her to bury her head into his chest. He gently massaged her upper back with one of her hands.

"Do you see why we try to limit your freedom? We are trying to protect you, Sakura." Moisture stung her eyes momentarily as he spoke in a quiet voice. "You're not ready to venture elsewhere yet. You should enjoy your innocence and ignorance while you have it, yeah."

Sakura only nodded in response. She understood now why Deidara kept her in her room. He had been right about the dangers that lie outside her small, little world. With a shaky exhale of breath, Sakura hugged Deidara tighter.

She realized that she actually felt comfortable and safe with him. Sakura had been wrong to think that it might be unsafe to be around Deidara. He actually protected her. How could she have possibly have thought that he might harm her?

In the next few minutes, Sakura found herself laying in bed under the covers. Deidara had left her to close the curtains because she had asked him to do so. She was afraid that he would leave as soon as he had done what she requested. When his armed finally extended towards the door knob, Sakura said,

"Deidara."

Her voice stopped him. He heard the need in her voice. It gave him unusual chills.

"Would you please stay with me a while longer?"

A short moment of hesitation passed. She watched as he gave out a weary sigh and returned to her bed. He laid down on the opposite side of her bed on the very edge. His head and neck were propped up against the headboard. He wouldn't move any closer to her even if she wished for it.

Soon enough, however, Sakura looked up at him with her shining emerald eyes. The strange luminous glow from them caught his attention instantly.

"Do you think I'll be strong enough to go outside someday?" She whispered softly.

Deidara patted her on the head a few times before stroking her hair gently. Her eyelids drooped lower in response. She didn't fight the sleepiness that weaved through her fading consciousness.

In her relaxed state of mind, Sakura heard him whisper something before she fell asleep. She couldn't make it out very well. In fact, she was so drowsy that she didn't honestly remember the words that he spoke. She just assumed that it was encouraging and left the world of consciousness peacefully.

Little beknownst to Sakura, however, Deidara said something that would have sent chills down her spine easily. It was a very quiet, yet certain answer.

"No. I _know_ you will be in due time."

* * *

**(A/N: For the longest time, I was unsure of how to proceed with this story. I was focusing more on the end rather than working up from the beginning. Thankfully, some writer's block cleared so that I could get this chapter out. I know that it is short, but this was all my muse would offer for the moment. I am pleased with the progression of the relationship between Deidara and Sakura. **

**Has anyone noticed any oddities about the story so far? If so, don't be afraid to shout it out! **

**I'm sorry if the story has any major grammar or spelling errors. I do not have Microsoft Word anymore since I got a new laptop and lost all the documents that I once had for my stories. Also, I do not have a decent spell/grammar check. :( If there is some major issues, please message me so that I can change it!**

**I hope everyone enjoys the chapter. Adding Sasori was so much fun!**

**Until next udpate,**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


	4. Chapter 2: The Nightmare

**The Inside**

**_Summary: The best way to corrupt is from within. _**

**_Main Characters: Sakura (15), Deidara (18), Sasori (19)_**

**_Progress: Chapter 2 _**

**_**Chapter 2 could be also known as Chapter 2: The End Of Childhood_**

* * *

**Chapter 2 - The Nightmare**

The following morning Sakura found herself twisted and entangled in the sheets. She also found that Deidara had left her some time in the middle of the night. Carefully unwrapping from the bed sheets, the pink-haired girl laid in bed for a while longer. Her entire body felt sore as she tried to roll over on her side to face the window.

What did she do last night? Fight a bear?

Her eyes settled on the closed curtains. Sakura then remembered the giant spider that had frightened her. Even now, the thought of the spider and it's menacing presence sent chills down her spine. She decided at that moment that she was glad that the curtains covered the window.

However, Sakura then remembered who closed the curtains. Her mind drifted off onto the subject of Deidara. She didn't know what to think about him. He always treated her as if she was a porcelain doll that needed to be protected. He always comforted her when she felt distressed or uncomfortable. Sakura had honestly wondered if he would stay with her until she fell asleep last night. She had to admit that she felt content knowing that he had stayed.

The sound of the door creaking open distracted her from her thoughts.

She sat up quickly despite the soreness in her back.

Deidara, as usual, peeked in before stepping inside. He always seemed to know when she woke up. He always joined her in less than ten minutes from the time that she awakened.

"Good morning." He murmured as he opened the door widely. His normally cheerful tone seemed subdued today. She would have thought to ask the reason behind this if the hallway outside wasn't so exposed. Deidara didn't even block the view of the hallway with his figure. He instead walked over to her and offered her a hand to step out of bed.

Sakura blinked at him in confusion before accepting his hand. She almost forgot to wish him a good morning in return.

"Sakura, are you hungry?" He asked quietly. She continued to look at him with a concerned gaze. He wouldn't look at her when she tried to meet his eyes with her own.

Sakura lifted a hand to his cheek, turning his head towards her. He didn't resist turning to look at her. His blue eye was a darker sapphire color that she had never seen before now. She tilted her head to the side with a questioning look.

Deidara ignored her look by saying, "Let's go to the kitchen, yeah." Without letting her answer, Deidara lifted a hand and gently grabbed her hand. He then proceeded to lead her towards the hallway.

Sakura had the urge to drag her feet like a child. She wasn't sure if she wanted to experience something new yet. She had never once been outside of her room because Deidara had always brought her food to her and she had her own bathroom. At the moment, Sakura felt more comfortable with the thought of avoiding an adventure. The spider incident had dampened her desire to leave the comfort of her safe haven.

By entering into the hallway, Sakura felt like she was going to enter an entirely different world.

However, right before Deidara and Sakura reached the hallway, Deidara stopped without warning. It was as if Deidara had ran into a brick wall. Sakura bumped into him and stepped back, slightly dazed by the sudden halt. She looked at the back of his head first out of instinct before leaning past his figure to look into the hallway.

A very tall, young man with silver, slicked back hair stood in the hallway. He wore the same cloak at Deidara did. Sakura felt the tension increase in Deidara's body as she continued to observe the man.

The first feature that struck Sakura odd about the man was his dark purple eyes. It wasn't just the color that bothered her; it was also the emotion that consumed them. Would it make sense if she thought the purple eyes held craziness that only a maniac's eyes could? His eyes narrowed in amusement when her eyes widened at this discovery.

"Hmph." The man made the noise in a cocky tone. He acted as though Sakura and Deidara were lower on some invisible scale than he was. Although Sakura felt fear as she looked at him, she also felt annoyance at his attitude.

"I suggest you keep your pet out of the way, Deidara." His voice was a higher octave than that of Deidara's. Sakura thought the higher octave matched the craziness in his eyes perfectly.

Sakura's lips formed a rigid line. She felt a natural anger surface as she stepped out from behind Deidara. Her hands clenched unconsciously.

"Go bother someone else, you jerk." Her emerald eyes flashed angrily at him.

The man raised his eyebrow in mild interest. He looked at her as if she had suddenly become someone of at least minor importance. In his book, Sakura had earned a point of respect for defending herself and speaking her mind.

He was about to open his mouth to say something when he suddenly froze for a moment. It looked as though someone had called his name by the way he tilted his head to the side. As if nodding to himself, he murmured something under his breath. His purple eyes set on her once more briefly.

"Farewell...for now." The man then started walking away, to the left of Sakura's vision. Sakura didn't relax until about ten seconds later. Her body felt tense and ready for action. She shook her arms out slightly to unbunch her muscles.

She then glanced at Deidara, who had not said anything for almost five minutes. Sakura noticed that his eyes were watching her cautiously. Had he been watching her the entire time? With a pang of annoyance, Sakura removed that thought from her head. She was being utterly ridiculous and paranoid.

"Who was that?" She murmured, ignoring the look in his eyes.

Deidara blinked once in response to her question. He was hesitating.

"His name is Hidan. I suggest that you do not provoke him. If you don't bother him, then he won't bother you, yeah."

Sakura looked at him in astonishment. She bent her arms at the elbows, turning her palms upwards in shock.

"He was making trouble before we even said a single word!" The volume of Sakura's voice was a level higher than usual. "Deidara, Hidan was the one trying to provoke one of us!"

Again, Sakura noticed Deidara make a pose as if he had heard someone calling his name. She had not heard anything but the silence surrounding them. Deidara then unfroze and reached a hand towards Sakura.

"It doesn't matter. The point is that I will take the responsibility of keeping him away from you." As soon as his hand touched Sakura's shoulder, she felt more relaxed. She resisted the urge to shake her head. Why was all of her anger fading away? Her eyes unconsciously found Deidara's hand on her shoulder.

Trying to be subtle, Sakura moved away from his hand and edged towards the hallway. "You know, I'm actually starting to get hungry." Deidara noticed how she walked away from him, but he chose to say nothing about it. As she had predicted, the calming effects were almost nonexistent after she had broken the physical connection between Deidara and herself.

"...Of course." He murmured before brushing past her to step into the hallway. He turned right, the opposite direction that Hidan had gone, and kept walking without waiting for her.

Sakura watched him leave for a second before quickening her pace to follow him. However, right as she entered the narrow hallway, she looked down the direction that Hidan had gone. For some reason, she felt that his prescence was still there even if she could clearly see that he was not. A lone, vertical rectangular window was at the end of the hallway. It was the only light in the hallway other than the light inside her bedroom cast. It's light showed that Hidan was not there.

With that one last glance, Sakura whipped her head around and started after Deidara.

**xxXxx**

_CREAK._

Sakura startled awake at the sound of the door hinge moving. She quickly glanced at the curtains and noticed that they were still closed. Her eyes then settled on the bedroom door, which was only open a crack. She could barely tell that the door was open in the darkness. She wondered if the door hadn't been closed properly earlier for there was no one there.

With a tired sigh, the pink-haired girl removed herself from her bed and walked over to the windows. With one hand, she lightly brushed aside one of the curtains to look outside. As she had figured, the night sky had taken over while she had been sleeping. Sakura couldn't even see the forest in the distance for the grounds were pitch black. The moon that was normally above was nonexistent and even the stars were untraceable.

She yawned and rubbed one of her eyes with the other hand. Sakura then turned around and proceeded to walk back towards her bed. She wanted nothing more than to return to a peaceful slumber now. However, she stopped and glanced at the bedroom door which was still open.

Reluctantly, Sakura made her way over to the door groggily.

She drowsily reached out to push the door. However, as soon as her hand touched the wood finish, Sakura stopped. She felt her breathing quickly fade to nothing.

She suddenly did not feel alone.

Then the door burst open, smashing her body against the wall. She let out a painful gasp as her shoulder blades and back slammed into the wall behind her. The force of the push had left her so breathless that she could barely breathe. Her lungs felt like she couldn't take in enough oxygen to allow her to live.

Sakura moved her head slightly to the right, trying to see around the edge of the door. She cringed as she realized that the metal door knob penetrated her abdomen. In a daze, the pink-haired girl tried to adjust her head so that she could see her stomach. She could not see the damage because of the tight space she was in.

She, however, did feel the heavy liquid that dribbled down her skin. Her body spasmed uncontrollably once at the sensation. Sakura bit down on her bottom lip harshly in an attempt to endure the intense pain.

The door suddenly swung away from her. Sakura fell forward because of the lack of support and crashed into the carpet. The descent to the ground shook Sakura hard enough that she felt the vibrations in her mind. It jarred and destroyed any logical thought left in her head.

"Stupid bitch." Sakura's ears barely registered the words. The blood pumping in her ears nearly drowned out what was said. With the sound of pounding drums echoing in her head, she forced herself to lift her head an inch off the floor. Sakura then turned her head towards the sound that she had heard.

A dark figure towered above her with a dark, suffocating presence. Her eyes widened when she noticed the color of the man's iris. A menacing purple gaze glared back at her.

"I didn't appreciate your insult earlier. I hadn't done shit to you." He said. With an exaggerated sigh, Hidan crouched down in front of her. "Now...you have given me a reason to do so."

Suddenly, Hidan withdrew an item from his cloak. It was a small rod that fit perfectly in the palm of his hand. Sakura stared in horror as the rod grew into a spear that was easily half a meter at least. She didn't have to look at the point of the spear to know that it was sharp enough to inflict a lot of pain.

"No." Sakura said unconsciously. She forced her left arm to move forward in an attempt to grab onto the spear. Although her body greatly protested, she struggled onto her knees and right hand quickly to move closer. Her stomach exploded in pain as she moved.

Her left hand grabbed onto the spear and held on tight. Hidan snorted and stood up, lifting her body like a rag doll. She appeared weak to him as she hung in mid air. Her feet couldn't even touch the ground.

She knew that she was denying the inevitable, but she still didn't want to give up. Sakura wanted to fight to her last breath. There was a fury building inside her that was running constant along with the fear. In fact, the fury was growing stronger as the minutes passed by. It was so frustrating to be so weak.

This hadn't been the first time she had felt weak. Hell, even earlier this week, Sakura had ran at the sight of a gigantic spider. Disappointment and anger came to surface at the thought of the spider incident. She knew the incident had caused her to fear going outside as a result.

Her eyes, which had been wide with fright, suddenly narrowed. Sakura's gaze set on Hidan intensely.

His head moved back slightly in surprise. It almost seemed like a recoil.

"Don't look at me like that." Hidan said in an annoyed tone. "You can act tough all you want, little girl, but it won't fool me." He then used his other hand to reach towards her bleeding abdomen.

Sakura tried to squirm away, but failed in doing so. His fingers forcibly probed the gaping hole in her stomach. She screamed in agony when a painful shudder racked her body. Her organs shifted uncomfortably as he toyed with them. Her mind screamed warning sirens as she endured.

Finally, Hidan retracted his hand and shook the spear until she lost her grip. With another harsh impact to the ground, Sakura inhaled sharply. She knew her body could not take much more pain. Circles of colors danced before her eyes.

"I'll show you what tough is."

Sakura's head snapped towards him. She couldn't believe her eyes when he smiled mischievously down at her before licking the blood of his fingers.

A premonition struck her without warning.

The image of Hidan turning the spear on himself came to her. He penetrated his heart with the spear without hesitation and laughed maniacally as he did so. As blood gushed down his chest, Sakura felt a pain in her own. In the next image, Sakura glanced down at herself to see a pool of crimson growing on her shirt. An unbearable pain followed, rendering her helpless as she collapsed. She knew better than to question if she had died in the process.

As soon as the flash of images ended, Sakura forced herself to her feet in a desperate attempt to stop Hidan. She knew that when he killed himself, that she would die too. Sakura had no desire to die with this man or any time soon for that matter. Her desire to live burned strongly within her as she pushed off her feet and lunged towards him.

At that same moment, Hidan turned the spear's point towards his chest. She reached out with her hands as she screamed a war cry. Sakura could see the excitement in Hidan's eyes as she grew closer. She honestly wondered if she would be able to save herself.

Sakura rammed into Hidan with a force that surprised Hidan. It was as if her lunge had been enhanced by some unknown force. His body slammed into the ground with Sakura right on top of him. His upper lip raised in disgust as a result.

The pink-haired girl did not realize what had happened during the fall until an intense, focused pain settled in the middle of her left hand. Sakura blinked several times as she tried to escape the dazed aftermath of her adrenaline rush. As if the world was muted, Sakura's gaze first went to Hidan and then to her hand. Hidan's face was expressionless the moment that her eyes laid sight on him. Then, his relieved sigh shattered the silence.

Her vision suddenly seemed to take in the entire scene. Before this point, it had been snapshots of the struggle. Hidan's face and his blood-stained lips. Sakura's spread out fingers on Hidan's cloak. Now, Sakura could see that Hidan's spear pierced through her hand and into his chest.

Blood forced a path up through Sakura's throat and onto her lips. The pain barely registered in her mind because it was so unearthly. It was as if her body could not comprehend such a feeling.

Hidan started laughing underneath her. His wild laughter echoed around the room and in her ears.

Her head dropped with a thud onto his chest. Blood splattered onto both of their faces when Sakura's face splashed in the pool of blood forming between their chests. She sensed the glaze overcoming her transfixed gaze as she stared at the open door of her bedroom.

As the room started to fade away, the fury that had captivated Sakura's heart continued to grow. What had started as a mere ember was quickly growing into an uncontrollable blaze. The blaze whipped around wildly, touching sections of Sakura's heart that hadn't been accessed in a long time.

Soon enough, the fury, which had seemed unfamiliar, would become natural once more.

**xxXxx**

When Deidara entered the pink-haired girl's room the next morning, he was accompanied by Sasori. Both of the cloaked men immediately sensed a difference in the normally calm atmosphere of the room as they stepped inside. A strained tension resided in the bedroom.

"Sakura?" Deidara hesitated before he called out her name. He then glanced at Sasori out of the corner of his eye when she didn't answer. Sasori ignored him and ventured towards the bed.

Sakura was calmly staring at the ceiling in thoughtfulness. She had her arms folded behind her head and her legs comfortably crossed. Despite the neutrality of her stature, however, Sasori could sense something off about her. Her normal self did not act like this.

"Sakura." Sasori murmured her name softly. She blinked once after a few seconds and then glanced at him without bothering to move her head. Her eyes bore into him for a moment blankly.

Sasori mentally noted that he could not read her emotions or her thoughts. The blankness of the stare reminded him of that of a dead person's. He had not seen her possess such an evasive front before now.

Suddenly, the atmosphere of the room changed once more.

Sakura sat up to face Sasori straight on. Her emerald eyes began to show emotion as they normally would. However, it was not emotions that Sasori or Deidara were accustomed to when it came to the girl.

Determination shone brightly in Sakura's eyes as she glanced between her two housemates. She was unnaturally lively today. When Sasori usually visited Sakura, she had the personality of someone who was afraid of life in some respect. Yet at this very moment, Sakura seemed as though she was ready to take on life without hesitation or a single thought for that matter.

"I want to become stronger." Sakura said with newly added volume to her voice.

Sasori stood quietly for a moment before replying. "What motivated such a desire?" He had never seen her before with such enthusiasm. The new trait made her more attractive in his opinion. He silently wondered if it was a trait that could last forever.

"I'm sick of needing protection. I don't want to be that little girl that is defenseless. I want to be able to hold on my own." As Sakura said this, her voice took on a slightly more serious tone. The tone notified Sasori and Deidara that she was not kidding. It also clarified that this change in Sakura was here to stay.

Sasori nodded to himself once in thoughtfulness. He then smiled towards Sakura.

"I approve of your choice, Sakura." She smiled warmly in return. "We would be happy to teach you."

Sasori turned his head and exchanged a quick glance with Deidara. Deidara gazed back knowingly at him and then looked away to distract Sakura with conversation. She hadn't noticed the seriousness in the exchange. If she had, she would have wondered what kind of strange emotions had overtaken her friends.

Sasori then remarked, "I will be back soon, Sakura. I must go talk to someone about your training."

Sakura stopped her conversation with Deidara to give him a questioning look. He didn't answer her until he reached the door and was almost completely gone from her sight. Sasori leaned back his head in the hallway so that his face was still visible.

He closed his eyes, saying in a relaxed tone, "Don't worry, dear. I am certain that you will be able to start this afternoon or tomorrow."

Sakura's fury felt almost quenched when Sasori basically promised her her first training session.

"I just need to be positive that Pein will allow it."

* * *

**(A/N: Well, I cannot believe how quickly I updated once again. This story seems to be coming along quite nicely. I don't know - _The Inside_'s plot is just coming so naturally right now. That probably explains why this chapter was as long as it was. Oh, I am so proud! :) Especially since I told some of my readers that this chapter would hopefully be out by the end of the weekend. I am meeting the deadline! Yes!**

**I bet most of you noticed how intense the nightmare seemed to be. Well, I chose to use this style of writing because nightmares in reality are actually that intense. And honestly, I needed something that would kick Sakura into action. And was the nightmare too much for a T-rated fanfiction? Let me know!**

**Also, I know Hidan needs his religious aspects to complete his Curse Technique. I chose not to include this for a reason. Sadly, I cannot tell you why I chose to do this until it is revealed later. (: At least this chapter contained a lot of action, huh?**

**For the record, this is currently an AkatsukixSakura fanfiction. I have no preference at this point. ;D Although I do notice that some of you do! Hehe.**

**Hope you guys enjoyed!,**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


	5. Chapter 3: Growing Up

**The Inside**

**Summary: The best way to corrupt is from within.**

**Characters: Sakura (15), Deidara (18), Sasori (19), Hidan (early 20's) **

**Progress: Chapter 3**

****This is an AkatsukixSakura story. It has no specific pairing yet.**

* * *

**Chapter 3 - Growing Up**

As soon as Sasori left the room, Deidara made his way over to Sakura's bed and stood in front of her. His sudden closeness attracted her attention to him. She eyed him as she raised an eyebrow inquiringly.

When he didn't say anything, Sakura chose to speak in his place.

"Deidara, please stop giving me that look. You are reminding me of a parent." She jumped off the bed to stand in front of him. She leaned her head back slightly to look into his eye. Confusion and a hint of worry resided in the depths of his blue iris. "I just want to be able to defend myself. I can't always rely on you."

"I-"

Sakura cut him off before he could say a full sentence. "Please, Deidara. I need to be able to protect myself. You know that as well as I do." As she said this, she was thinking of Hidan. The memory of the nightmare almost made her curl her upper lip in disgust. She resisted, however, because Deidara would have become even more worried.

"I can protect you from Hidan, Sakura." He said very quietly. It was almost a whisper. She wondered if he had even meant to say what he had. Sakura was almost certain Deidara had hesitated to say it.

Sakura forced herself to lift a hand to his cheek. She knew that touching him provided a strange, calming effect. She didn't want to lose any part of her new change. She didn't want to lose her determination or inner strength by one simple mistake. The life of a defenseless, naive child was something that she didn't want to return to once more.

"I want you to understand something."

Deidara searched her bright emerald eyes for some reason to explain her rapid change. She could sense his uncertainty as she held her hand against his cheek. The action had definitely gained his attention.

"Deidara, I'm growing up."

**xxXxx**

"I want you to go forward with the training."

Sasori watched Pein's shadowed figure across the room. Pein gazed thoughtfully out the window for a moment. He lifted a hand from the back of the wooden chair that he had been sitting in before Sasori entered the room. Touching his chin softly, he then said,

"Kisame will train with her first. I do not want to see her outside. Do you understand?"

Sasori nodded for an answer. He was quiet for a few seconds before he called out his master's name.

Pein turned his head slightly to glance at him.

"Why do you think she requested training?" Sasori asked quietly.

Pein didn't answer for a few minutes. During this silence, Sasori's eyes gazed around the small, sparse room. It was practically vacant except for a desk, chair, and a few bookshelves. Dust heavily hung around the room. Sasori assumed that it had been a while since the small office had been used.

Finally, Pein answered by murmuring, "At this point, it does not matter." He then turned his back to Sasori as a sign of dismissal. The conversation was over. There was no reason to prompt Pein for any more information.

Sasori had to hide his annoyance by bowing towards Pein. He forced himself to shift his facial muscles into an indifferent expression. Over the last few months, he had been growing more impatient with his master. Pein refused to share his opinions on important matters. He always brushed them off as insignificant.

With a deep inhale of breath through his nose, Sasori left the room and quietly shut the door behind him as he did so.

**xxXxx**

"When do I start?"

Sakura didn't waste any time asking questions as soon as Sasori walked through the door. He had barely taken a step inside. He stopped as soon as her voice reached his ears.

His eyes fell upon the sight of Sakura and Deidara near each other. He felt a twinge of emotion that he barely recognized when he met gazes with his partner. It felt similar to annoyance. He was about to give the emotion a name when Sakura prompted him again.

"Sasori, are you going to answer me?"

Sakura walked away from Deidara to be closer to the red-haired man. Sasori was the only one to notice Deidara's gaze fall onto the floor. If he was reading his partner right, Deidara seemed to be upset by Sakura's departure from his side. Sakura, however, seemed oblivious to this as she walked away.

Sasori held a hand up in order to stop Sakura's advancement towards him. Fortunately, it worked quite well. Sakura's body stopped in place as soon as the hand was raised. It was almost as if her body was a puppet and he had pulled her strings to make her obey. A fascinating thought surfaced within Sasori's mind when he witnessed the sight.

Slowly, he answered, "...Yes." At this moment, Sasori's eyes were analyzing her figure. Sakura noticed his roaming eyes and cleared her throat to gain his attention. The noise attracted Deidara's attention as well as Sasori's.

"You will begin training tomorrow morning." Sasori murmured as he turned to look somewhere other than the girl. "I will come get you and lead you to your destination. Do you find this acceptable?"

A small, pleased smile formed upon Sakura's face. "Of course." She felt content with the fact that she would have training. She wondered if the nightmare had had a good effect on her rather than a bad one. It had, in fact, pushed her towards improving herself.

Sasori nodded unconsciously before leaving the room without a farewell. Sakura could hear his footsteps as he retreated to another part of the house. She blinked once in confusion before she turned to Deidara. However, just as she was doing so, Deidara brushed past her rather quickly and exited the room as well. He turned right in the hallway, which had been the way Sasori had gone.

With the door hanging open wide, Sakura waited for a few moments in silence. She was unsure whether or not on how to proceed. She was fearful that if she followed them, she might lose her new privilege. Sakura went and sat on the bed restlessly. Her eyes didn't leave the hallway for even a second.

"Oh, whatever," Sakura murmured aloud before standing up and running into the hallway. She glanced either way before following the same path that her housemates had used.

**xxXxx**

"Stop right there."

Sasori turned his head to glance behind him, but did not heed to the order. His eyes narrowed immediately upon seeing Deidara. His partner looked slightly flustered. Sasori might have gone as far to say that he looked angry.

"What is it? I'm busy." He knew his tone was rather short.

"I saw how you were looking at the girl, Sasori. You know better than that, yeah." Deidara had almost forgotten to use his trademark 'yeah' at the end of his sentence. His hands were clenched tightly as he took a step forward.

"You have no right to talk to me like that. I could say the exact same thing to you." Sasori finally turned around to face him. His annoyance was bubbling up to the surface as he did so. He had more important matters to deal with than being involved in this quarrel.

One of Deidara's hands flew to the wrist of his other hand. His fingers gripped the edge of the black glove he was wearing lightly. His eye flashed a warning at the red-haired man.

"That would be a very stupid choice. You know that as well as I do." Sasori murmured, trying his best to be as indifferent as possible. He didn't wish to get riled up over such a trivial conflict. It was over a girl, for Christ's sake. A girl that could be easily replaced. However, as soon as these thoughts went through Sasori's head, he felt a twinge of guilt.

He knew that Sakura couldn't be as easily replaced as any other girl. She was different. In fact, she was the reason that all of them were here.

Deidara noticed Sasori's lack of attention towards him. Immediately, he was filled with more anger. The least that Sasori could do was listen to him. But he knew his partner too well to know that he would listen to what Deidara had to say. He was majorly stubborn and careless.

Sasori's gaze refocused on Deidara once more. "Be smart for once and think before you act." His tone sounded a knotch softer to his partner. For some reason, Sasori had calmed down a considerable amount.

Deidara's hand slowly released it's grip on his black glove. He straightened his back so that he was no longer in a defensive position. He huffed once, saying,

"Don't you dare turn Sakura into one of your puppets." Deidara growled. "That's a warning."

Sasori turned his back to Deidara. He walked a few steps before he stopped and said, "And don't you try fucking her." The red-haired man turned his eyes to glare at his partner.

"_That's _a warning."

Deidara stared at his partner as he walked away into the darkness of the hallway. He opened his mouth to say something but ended up grinding his teeth in frustration. Sasori didn't use vulgarity to get his point across in most circumstances. He was still in disbelief that Sasori had done so in the first place.

Actually, he was more surprised that Sasori had accused Deidara of wanting to have sex with the girl. Had he said that to provoke a fight? Deidara's eyes widened. Or had it been a warning?

Deidara shifted uncomfortably as he walked back the way he had come. If Sasori knew that Deidara was starting to actually care for Sakura, he could easily get rid of him. Only a few words to Pein would be necessary to relieve Deidara.

He sighed; this hadn't been expected at all. It seemed that the two partners had more than art to argue about now.

**xxXxx**

Unfortunately, Sakura ended up back in the kitchen. The hallway had turned out to be a maze of turns, locked doors, and more hallways. She slipped into a chair at a table in the adjoining dining room and set her head down quietly. How could she have lost them? It seemed impossible.

Just as she was berating herself for failure, she heard footsteps behind her. Sakura straightened up and glanced through the doorframe to the kitchen. Before she saw a person, however, she saw the tip of a cane extended out an inch or so above the ground. She was slightly confused.

Soon enough, however, a man walked past the doorframe. He wore the same attire that Deidara and Sasori did. The only difference with this man was that he had long, black hair pulled into a low pony tail. She couldn't see his eyes from her position because his bangs hid a good section of his profile.

Sakura sat quietly, unsure if she should try to gain his attention. She didn't quite understand why he used a cane in such a way. He was constantly moving it back and forth in front of him. It was as if he was scanning for something.

She shifted in her chair enough to make it squeak loudly. Her eyes widened at the noise. It might as well had awakened the dead.

"Who's there?"

The deep, velvety voice of the man reached her ears. Sakura watched as his figure came back into her vision through the doorframe. He was facing her now.

Then, everything clicked in her head.

_He's blind. _

She wasn't sure how she knew the difference between a blind person and a person who isn't. Sakura wasn't even sure how she knew what the definition of blindness was. The idea hadn't even surfaced until her gaze went over the pitch black sunglasses that he was wearing. It hid his eyes from her completely with their large, bulky frames.

Sakura stammered a few times as she introduced herself. "M-My name is Sakura." She almost held out her hand out of habit but stopped herself. "I didn't mean to startle you."

The man didn't say anything for a moment. He tilted his head to the side as if he was listening to someone. Sakura was confused by this because she didn't hear anything.

"No harm done, Sakura. My name is Itachi." He paused, then said, "What are you doing in here?"

She laughed sheepishly at his question. She wasn't sure entirely sure how to answer it. Sakura wondered if he would hear the nervousness in her voice if she tried to lie. Before she could say anything, however, he answered his own question.

"By the sound of your breathing, I am guessing you are trying to come up with a good answer." He managed a small, warm smile. "I wouldn't try lying to me. You wouldn't be able to pull it off."

Sakura exhaled a deep breath in relief. She wasn't sure why she felt such relief. The pink-haired girl guessed that it felt better knowing that she couldn't lie to him.

"I'm sorry," She began, "I was just trying to follow my friends-"

Itachi held a hand up to silence her. She immediately cut her sentence off.

"Don't worry about it." He murmured quietly. "I can't see you being that big of a troublemaker."

Sakura wasn't sure whether to laugh at the pun in his words. She watched his facial expression to see how she should react. He smiled a little wider at her hesitation. It was as if it was a signal to laugh because Sakura let out a laugh that she had been holding in.

As she had been observing his face, she had noticed just how young he was. He had to be only a few years older than her. She silently wondered how someone so young could lose their vision. She was too polite to ask him. Sakura just felt that it was a shame.

He stepped aside to let her through the doorframe. He had taken a step as if he really did have decent vision. Itachi bowed in a gentlemen-like way for her sake.

Sakura smiled ever so slightly at his display. "Thank you, Itachi."

She then retreated to her room, thoughts captivated by the kind blind man.

**xxXxx**

The next morning, Sakura found herself in a completely empty room. It had to be the largest room in the house because of its incredible size and high ceiling. The walls were a warm tan color and the floor was made of polished wood. She had been asked to only enter into the room barefoot.

Sasori stood next to her quietly. He hadn't even looked at her ever since he came to retrieve her. In fact, it was as if he was making a point not to even glance in her direction.

"Why isn't Deidara here?" Sakura whispered quietly. Her voice echoed around the room despite it's softness.

Sasori had his head lowered into his robe. She couldn't see his lips as he answered.

"He had to take care of some errands today. I know he would have been here if he could have been."

Sakura halfheartedly smiled at Sasori's answer. It felt almost forced, but she managed it. The red-haired man's distant attitude was bothering her almost too much for her to act normally. He must have slept horribly or something. Her mind then drifted to the possibility that Deidara and Sasori had had a fight.

She glanced at him quickly, eyes widening a fraction. It was definitely a possibility.

"Don't worry so much, Sakura. I'm sure he'll come see you when he's available."

The wooden panel doors slid open quietly. Sakura turned to face the entrance and froze in shock.

Sasori walked forward towards the giant figure standing outside the room. He was trying his hardest not to take pleasure in the fact waves of uncertainty and fear were coming off of Sakura. He had expected this reaction and he was enjoying every minute of it. Sasori couldn't wait until her defenses kicked in.

The huge, towering figure entered and closed the panel behind him.

"Kisame, I'm glad to see that you made it." Sasori said.

"Of course. I wouldn't miss training someone new." He had a deep, scratchy voice as he spoke. Kisame then turned towards Sakura and walked close enough so that she had to lean back slightly to see his face.

Sakura couldn't mask the horror that she felt. She could only keep herself from screaming by biting her tongue literally. She had never seen someone like Kisame before.

His skin was blue and scaly. He had beady eyes and sharp, razor teeth like that of a shark. She couldn't comprehend how this kind of look was possible. Sakura was so focused on his teeth that she barely notice his wild, dark blue hair or the gill indentations on his cheek bones.

Her knees gave out unexpectedly. She dropped to the ground, shivering in shock.

"Do I look that pretty?" Kisame let out a harsh laugh. "C'mon, girl, I came here for a reason. Time to grow up and show me that this wasn't a waste of my time."

Sasori crouched near her and placed his hands on her shoulders. She didn't even register that he had done so until after the fact. However, before she could resist his hold, Sasori leaned his face close to the side of her head and whispered against her ear.

"Sakura, you told me yesterday that you wanted to prove yourself. You said you wanted to be able to defend yourself. This is the way you must achieve your dream. Are you going to sit here and cower like a cornered mouse?"

Sakura didn't feel more relaxed after Sasori let go of her. His touch hadn't relaxed her at all. Quite the contrary, his words had canceled out the effects of his touch altogether.

"Get up, girl." Kisame leaned forward until his face was right in front of hers. He growled at her as he gave the order. "You can't be this weak."

Sakura's blood began to boil immediately. She knew she wasn't weak. There was an inner strength inside her that could prove Kisame _wrong_!

"Get out of my face." She said quietly.

"What was that? I didn't quite hear you." Kisame smiled mockingly down at her. "You're just as quiet as a mouse. Is that your name? Mouse?"

"Get out of my face." Sakura repeated her words even louder. Even still, Kisame continued to taunt her.

He poked her forehead and smiled fully. His teeth gleamed in the light. At first, she had been imaging that the scraps of her body would need to be flossed out. Now, Sakura imagined that there would be a few teeth missing after she punched him square in the mouth.

Without hesitation, Sakura pulled her right fist back and slammed it into his jaw. "I SAID GET THE HELL OUT OF MY FACE!"

Kisame grunted and jumped back a few paces. Her hand hurt from the punch, but she knew it was definitely worth it when blood dribbled out of the corner of Kisame's mouth.

Sakura managed to pull herself to her feet as Kisame started towards her again. His beady eyes were narrowed in excitement as he reached behind his back with one hand. Sakura's eyes widened as he pulled out a giant sword.

The "blade" had to be as long as her height and wide as her width. It was wrapped tightly with layers of white bandages. However, as it grew near her, the bandages tore with tiny, sharp talons. The shreds of the bandages covered her as the blade grew near.

Finally, Sakura let out the scream she had been holding in. Her mind couldn't process any logical thought that could save her. Her legs locked in place as she held her crossed arms up to protect herself. She could just imagine the talons digging into her flesh.

She closed her eyes as the sword came within inches of her. Sakura didn't want to see the blood that would splatter onto the floor and her clothing. The tension in her body constricted her movements completely. She could do nothing more than wait for her death.

_God, I feel like such a failure! I thought I had more potential than this! _

...

Sakura's eyes shot open as she felt her life leaving her. It wasn't the way she had expected though. Kisame was holding the sword a few inches above her head. The talons couldn't even graze against her. She watched in shock and confusion as an aura of blue came off of her body. The sword was devouring her blue aura like a meal. The talons shivered as the aura touched them.

Sakura grew weaker as more aura fled from her body. Was she watching her life force leaving her?

"You're not dying." Kisame laughed loudly at her. "I know it doesn't feel great, but it's necessary for our training." After a few more seconds of draining her of her aura, Kisame pulled the sword away from her. Sakura collapsed to the ground without missing a beat.

Kisame walked away from her and set his sword against the wall. He glanced at Sasori, who had been spectating this entire time. The red-haired man glanced at him in acknowledgement before settling his gaze back on the girl.

Sakura was gasping, trying to breathe in oxygen. What had she just experienced? She wasn't dead, but she wondered if she might as well had been.

"Do you realize what I took from you?" Sakura tried to struggle onto her hands and knees. Shakily, she tilted her head up so that she could glare at him. Her pink bangs fell in front of her eyes as she did so.

"N-No. I guess I-I don't. You should tell me, asshole."

Kisame grinned at her insult. "You got quite the mouth for someone who was just drained of chakra." He laughed heartedly at her and budged Sasori with an elbow. Sasori rolled his eyes at Kisame's antics.

The word 'chakra' seemed to ring a bell in Sakura's head. She searched her memory for why the word was so familiar. Glimpses of hand signs and 'chakra' engulfing a body part came to mind. She knew that she understood it. Sakura just couldn't come up with the words to describe it.

"I want my chakra back." She growled at him.

Kisame wagged a finger at her in response. "No. I want you to train without it until you can defend yourself. You have to be able to know taijutsu before you enhance it or use anything else that involves chakra." He then smiled menacingly. "Trust me, girl, it will be worth the blood and sweat."

Sakura eventually was able to struggle onto her feet. She felt as though she had totally lost any sense of equilibrium. Her hands would not stop shaking either.

"You don't even fully understand the concept of chakra yet. You just know you feel better with it." Kisame walked towards her until he was towering above her once more. His shadow covered her completely.

Sakura threw another punch at his face. It was nowhere near as powerful as her first punch had been. In fact, Kisame didn't even flinch. His scales lightly scratched her knuckles as she punched him. She had done more damage on herself than the shark man.

Kisame folded his arms and chuckled.

"Now, c'mon, little mouse. Come at me with all you have!"

* * *

**A/N: I can't believe how long it took me to get this chapter out! I absolutely love the way it turned out though. I wasn't sure if I should introduce Kisame yet. But his character just made me laugh so much. If I was Sakura, that would definitely motivate me to want to kick his ass. **

**Yes, I know I used the 'f' word. I couldn't think of how else Sasori could get his threat across. Besides, it fits with his character. I would have had Deidara say it, but Sasori just seems ever more intimidating to me. (: **

**I am so excited that Itachi has been introducted as well! Is anyone seeing a trend in the characters besides Kisame and Pein? (They're the odd ones out, obviously.) If you can pick out the trend, let me know what it is. It's rather obvious. Or maybe it's just obvious to me because I worked the trend into the story. XD**

**Anyhoo, let me know what you think of the story thus far! **

**Love to all my readers!**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


	6. Chapter 4: Desire

**The Inside **

**Summary: The best way to corrupt is from within.**

**Characters: Sakura (15), Deidara (18), Sasori (19), Hidan (earlly 20's), Itachi (early 20's), Kisame (N/A), Pein (N/A)**

**Progress: Chapter 4**

* * *

**Chapter 4 - Desire**

_Crack._

The sound echoed in Sakura's head as she crashed into the hardwood floor. A throbbing pain resided on the right side of her skull as she tried struggling onto her elbows. There was no doubt that she had hit her head on the way to the ground. It was definitely going to be a pain she would feel for the next few weeks.

She was having trouble remembering why she hadn't given up yet. As she forced her body back up, Sakura could hear the blood rushing in her ears. She knew the adrenaline was helping her body from collapsing. However, she knew there was more to it than that. She knew that you had to have a strong mind to have a strong body. Without her willpower and inner strength, she would have given up hours ago.

In other words, Sakura could blame her mind for allowing her to be near death.

This had been going on for hours. Sasori couldn't tell you how many hours had passed since the session had begun. He had stopped paying attention after the first one, he knew that much. However, that was also when he had noticed how long she had lasted thus far. He hadn't expected her to last more than thirty minutes. He had expected her to give up.

Time after time, he watched the pink-haired girl struggle back onto her feet to face Kisame again. Every time, Sakura would throw a punch or attempt to kick Kisame. At first, Kisame dodged her when she still had the energy to do more than a kick or two. At this point, however, he allowed her to hit him. Her punches and kicks never had hurt him. He had only dodged because he knew it motivated her to keep coming at him.

Now, both Kisame and Sasori knew that Sakura would keep coming back for more no matter what.

Every time that she came back, Sakura would say, "Don't hold back" or, "I'm not done yet". And Kisame would give her what she asked for. There had been a few times where Sakura had crashed into the wall at least fifteen away rather than the ground.

Even if it took a few minutes, Sakura always managed to get back up. She could barely walk back to Kisame, let alone throw a punch, but she continued to return anyways. Sasori couldn't believe his eyes every time that she endured this vicious cycle.

He glanced at Kisame, who had had the same face of indifference for the last few hours. The excitement had drained out of his eyes. Sasori couldn't tell what he was thinking, but he was pretty certain that Kisame was just as baffled.

Sakura was slowly walking back to Kisame again. You could hear her wince softly with every step. Blood had started dripping from the gash on the side of her head. She hadn't seemed to notice it.

Suddenly, she fell back onto her knees, groaning in agony. Another loud _crack_ filled the air. Her jaw was clenched tightly, teeth grinding against each other.

Sasori felt the urge to move towards her, but resisted when she brought one leg up so that she was kneeling.

"C'mon, little mouse," Kisame growled. He could tell that she was reaching the end of her willpower. Some part of him felt obligated to motivate her. However, the other part of him wanted to see if she could motivate herself.

_Get up, Sakura._

Sakura kept telling herself those words. Every time she fell, her mind would scream the phrase. Every time she wanted to give in, her mind would remind her of how far she had come so far. It would whisper to her about her potential and encourage her to stand up one more time.

This time, however, Kisame was the one to walk over to her. He didn't know what was making his body move towards the conflicted girl. The only thing that he knew that it was not out of pity.

A few tears escaped her eyes as she looked up to the shark-like man. She could only see him through tunnel vision.

Sasori's eyes widened as Kisame offered a hand to her. His head cocked to the side as he watched in astonishment. He had never seen Kisame go out of his way to help another. It was...unnatural.

There was nothing said as Kisame extended his hand. Sakura continued to look at it. Neither one of her hands had moved to accept his offer.

A few minutes passed as Sakura continued to hesitate. Kisame still had not withdrawn his hand.

Her inner conflict finally came to a consensus.

Her hand reached up towards Kisame's hand. With the other hand, she pushed herself from the ground so that she could help herself reach him. Then, right before Sakura could grasp his hand, she grabbed onto his wrist instead. Immediately, Kisame felt chills race down his spine. Something about the girl seemed to change as if a switch had been flipped.

Sakura's eyes narrowed in a such a way as if to say:

_Gotcha. _

Kisame's eyes widened as Sakura pulled on his wrist. He thought she was trying to pull him down. He thought that until he realized she was using his wrist for leverage to stand up again. She not only stood up; She launched herself at him.

Kisame couldn't help staggering back as she threw her weight into him. She kneed him as hard as she could into his chest and slammed the bottom of her palm into his nose. This time she heard a _crack_ that meant she had shattered a bone of his rather than one of her own.

Blood gushed from Kisame's nose immediately. He coughed violently, wheezing, trying to breathe as he tried to cover his face with his free hand. Some of the blood was going down the back of his throat. Her combination of attacks was leaving him gasping for air, trying not to suffocate.

He tried to throw her off of him, but ended up stumbling a few paces back. He slipped on some of the blood on the slick hardwood floor and crashed onto his back. She straddled him as he tried to breathe through his mouth. Her hands moved to his throat, gripping it lightly.

Her eyes bored into him with a look that he had only seen among the members of his organization. One that showed she had the power to choose whether he lived or died. His life was in her hands.

"Don't..."

Sakura murmured this quietly. He had to strain to hear her. He had been trying to remove her grip from his throat with his own hands. He could have broken the bones in her arms and she would have kept suffocating him, staring at him with a look that could kill.

"...Ever...Underestimate...Me..."

And with that, she released her grip on his throat and got off of him. She collapsed onto her side and laid there, motionless.

Kisame shakily sat up, breathing harshly. He looked at the pink-haired girl, at the blood covering his cloak, and then at the girl again. He reached up with his hand and took the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger. With a loud _snap_ and a painful grunt, he moved it back into place.

He finally looked at Sasori, who had to break his gaze from the girl. She was completely unconscious now.

"Where did that strength come from?" Kisame asked.

Sasori didn't respond for a moment. He walked over to the girl, searching for any sign of chakra. There wasn't enough to perform the powerful actions she had just done. He shook his head as a reply.

Kisame went back to staring at the blood on his cloak. His mind was boggled by what had just occurred.

Sasori kneeled next to Sakura's body, tenderly prodding her shoulder so that she rolled onto her back. Dark bruises and deep gashes covered her body. Abrasions were very present on her skin as well, especially around her shoulder blades and arms. He lightly touched the gash on skull and felt excessive heat emitting from that area.

There was no doubt that she had cracked her skull.

He wondered if it had damaged her brain at all. He wondered, if perhaps, this was one of the reasons to why she found the strength to take down Kisame. Had her pain receptors been damaged? Had she lost common sense?

"We need to report this to Pein." Sasori turned towards Kisame when he didn't hear an answer. Kisame had managed to get back onto his feet. He was walking towards the exit, some blood droplets following him as he went.

"Kisame!"

Kisame slowed to a stop, but didn't turn around to face Sasori. Sasori could hear Kisame's labored breathing.

"I will report this to Pein. You take care of the girl."

With that said, Kisame spat more blood onto the floor and left.

* * *

"What the fuck happened to her?"

It had been a few days since the training session when Deidara saw Sakura once more. She was resting quietly, her head propped up by a pillow. A patch covered the gash on her head. Bandages covered her upper arms and also wrapped around her shoulder blades. That was all he could see without removing the blanket that covered up to just above her breasts.

Sasori opened his eyes and looked at the blond from his seated position next to Sakura. Deidara had been peeking around the ajar door to check on Sakura when he saw the blood stained sheets and bandages. At that moment, he burst through the door with enough force to slam the door into the wall. The door splintered, cracking in several places.

Sakura's eyelashes fluttered a few times, but didn't open.

"Keep your voice down, Deidara. She is in the process of recovery."

"NO! What is she recovering from? What kind of training did you put her through, yeah?"

Sasori's eyes narrowed in annoyance and irritation. He leaned his head onto his hand, his fingers touching the temple. He was not in the mood for bickering. He also was not in the mood to explain to Pein that Sakura's recovery process was interrupted.

"Sakura sparred with Kisame without the use of chakra. The purpose was to test her taijutsu skills." He glanced at Sakura, who was quietly breathing. The only movement that she made was the rise and fall of her chest. "The only reason that Sakura is in this state is because she would not give up. She kept getting back up to face Kisame."

Sasori thought about adding Sakura's incredible feat towards the end of the session, but resisted. It would be brought up when the organization had its meeting. Until then, Sasori figured that it would be better to keep it under wraps. The less Deidara knew for now, the better.

Deidara had to fight off the urge to run over and punch Sasori in the face. He tightened his fists in anger.

"She's just a child-"

"Do not feed me that crap." Sasori's eyes flashed at Deidara in warning. "Would you show interest in a child like you have if she was _just_ a child? We wouldn't be here if she was _just_ a child."

Deidara gritted his teeth against each other. He couldn't argue with Sasori without losing his cool. He would have to return when he had his composure again.

As he made his way through the door frame, Sasori called out to him with a smirk upon his face.

"At least her skull only has a simple fracture!"

Deidara could be heard running down the hallway, away from the room. Minutes later, a few minor explosions outside the complex could be heard. The vibrations rattled the clay figures on the window sill in Sakura's room. Some of the ones closest to the edge of the sill fell off and shattered into pieces.

**xxXxx**

Sakura's eyes opened from her deep slumber to find herself in a barren wasteland. The sky was a dark, ominous gray and lacked the presence of clouds. The ground beneath her feet was gritty, dry sand. She looked all around, but all she could see was flat land.

She blinked a few times, rubbing her eyes. Her brain felt foggy as if she were looking through a thin veil.

Was this real?

When she opened her eyes again, the sand had turned into a deep crimson color. She jumped a bit at the change. Fear instantly filled her when the sands started shifting about her feet. Then she started sinking as the sand wrapped around her feet and ankles, dragging her down.

She tried to scream, but couldn't. Her mouth was sewn shut by blue thread. Her hands tried to pry to open but it was in vain.

The sand was taking her down inch by inch. It was crawling up her waist, her chest, her outstretched arms. She was clawing at the ground desperately till she felt her fingertips bleed. Her crimson blood mixed with the sand.

Her eyes were just above the sand. Her eyes looked around frantically as she attempted to scream, muffled. Tears were forming at her eyes in terror.

Right as the sand was taking over her vision, a glimpse of a leaf flew past her in the wind. It's simple green color was what distracted her from all the red that surrounded her. It floated away as quickly as it had come. Her eyes watched it move away gracefully in the wind.

Then her world faded to nothing but dark crimson sand.

**xxXxx**

"Would you like some food, Sakura?"

"I would, but I'm afraid I can't move my arms."

Sakura tried to move her arms, but they wouldn't budge. She smiled sadly, looking at her pathetic, useless arms. If she were to eat, she would require assistance. She glanced at Sasori, who sat next to her, holding a tray of grilled chicken and white rice.

Sasori set the tray onto his lap and patted her lightly on the shoulder. "It's alright, Sakura, I would be happy to assist you. Please don't be ashamed to ask." He smiled at her in such a sincere way that she managed to smile back.

"I would appreciate it."

Sasori removed his hand from her shoulder so that he could place the tray on her lap. She glanced at the tray and then at him in confusion. He continued to smile, although it no longer held sincerity. It was like a smile that held no other purpose than to give his lips a form. It was...lifeless.

"How am I going to-"

"Just trust me. Please relax."

His right hand glided across her upper back. The feeling gave her small chills down her spine. His hand stopped at the base of her neck, his fingers beginning to lightly tap against her skin. All of a sudden, her right shoulder twitched. She cringed a bit at the sudden movement. This first movement was followed by a twitch in her knee. It was as if a doctor had hit her knee to get a reflex.

"Sasori, what are you doing?"

She was trying not to sound panicked, but she was sure it wasn't working.

"Do you remember what I showed you when you first met me?"

Sakura felt a cool sensation spread from the base of her neck down through her arms and hands. She couldn't help exhaling a soft breath. Her nerves were lightly tingling. It was gentle and comfortable. She was so astounded by the feeling that she didn't realize her mobility was being taken from her.

Sasori watched her calm down slowly, easing into the sensation. Her eyelashes fluttered a few times. Her head bobbed a few times.

"Uhh...yes. You showed me that you were skilled with puppets."

She felt his fingers starting to glide across the base of her neck. There was no certain pattern. She felt a tug in her arms and hands. Her eyes widened as she noticed her arms moving without her own accord. Her right arm lifted, her hand rotating to grab the fork on the tray. She watched in awe and shock as her hand used the fork to pierce the grilled chicken and lift it to her mouth. She hesitated for a moment before taking a bite.

"I can work with humans just like puppets as well. Isn't that fascinating?"

Sakura found that her only response was to nod her head. She was speechless. How was this possible? Magic? ...Chakra?

"One of these days I will show you the process, Sakura. For right now, let's focus on getting you back to full health. Alright?"

He moved her right arm again so that she could take another bite. Sakura took the bite gently.

She found it hard to speak when she was in so much shock. She had never experienced anything like this before. It was comforting to know that Sasori was eager to keep her entertained. However, it was a bit terrifying that he could have this much control of her body. She made herself push the thought away. It was not the time to be frightening herself.

Sasori used his other hand to stroke her cheek. Her head turned so that she could look at him. It wasn't of her accord. Sakura's head leaned into his hand as a lightheaded feeling struck her. She suddenly could barely form thoughts in her head. Her mind's natural warning signals were turning off.

"I do have a question for you, though." He murmured softly. His voice was tantalizing and velvety. He looked into her eyes deeply as if to look into her soul. At that moment, she noticed that his eyes seemed rather glassy. It was as if she were looking into the eyes of a doll.

Her mind was trying to struggle against the control he had over her. It was so powerful and intoxicating. Her eyelids unconsciously lowered as drowsiness and some other unfamiliar emotion captivated her. An uncomfortable warmth was gathering in her lower abdomen.

Sasori leaned his face closer to hers. Sakura had no choice but to lean forward as well. Her body felt overwhelmed with the amount of sensation that was happening to her. She felt like she was burning up and chilly all at the same time. Her nervous system was going crazy.

He smiled a real smile then. One that sent natural chills throughout her body. It was almost enough to snap her out of his control.

"Have you ever wanted to ensure that you'll stay beautiful...forever?"

* * *

**A/N: Oh I feel so much better now that this chapter is finished. I'm sorry it has taken so long for this story to be updated. I've found that this story might be the one that can get me to shell out the chapters in other fanfiction again. I've been struggling with ATCBW. Writer's block is a major bitch - that is for sure. This story, however, is something that I find to be...interesting. You know that a story is a gem when it captivates the writer as they write it. This would be that story for me. **

**Confused? Message me and I'll hopefully be able to help you out some! **

**Is this testing Teen-rating a little bit too much? Let me know if I should change it to Mature. I'm really thinking about it since this chapter has nothing on the rest of the story. For some reason, my brain was thinking that it really intense. Either way, let me know.**

**I apologize for grammar and spelling errors. I checked it over the best that I could. **

**More to come soon. Or, that is what I'm trying for.**

**Love to you all!**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


	7. Chapter 5: Error

**The Inside**

**Summary: The best way to corrupt is from within. **

**Characters: Sakura (15), Deidara (18), Sasori (19), Hidan (early 20's), Itachi (early 20's), Pein (N/A), Kisame (N/A)**

**Progress: Chapter 5**

* * *

_**Previously...**_

_He smiled a real smile then. One that sent natural chills throughout her body. It was almost enough to snap her out of his control._

_"Have you ever wanted to ensure that you'll stay beautiful...forever?"_

_**.x.X.x.X.x.**  
_

**Chapter 5 - Error**

"Stay beautiful...forever?" Sakura was barely able to repeat the words. Her lips felt nearly glued shut and her tongue felt extremely heavy in her mouth. Her words were coming out in slow motion. She felt like everything in the world was moving at snail-pace.

Sasori nodded, his face brightening a little bit.

"I could preserve your beauty for eternity." He murmured as he used his free hand to slide down her neck and side. He ignored the bandages as he did so, making sure that she felt everything that he touched. Her body lightly shuddered in response.

Sakura struggled against the invisible force keeping her lips shut. She kept making muffled sounds. Her voice was ignored by Sasori. He actually _shh_'d her at one point. He didn't seem to care that she was uncomfortable with his touches.

Tears were trying to form at the corner of her eyes. Her head was starting to throb violently, especially where her skull was fractured. It felt like someone was starting to stab her brain where the fracture was present. It was like her very skull was being pried apart.

Her mind's warning signals were finally starting to resurface again. Her eyes flashed in agony as Sasori's hand ventured to her hip, settling there for now. She was starting to understand what he wanted. She also understood that she definitely did _not _want what he desired.

A distant tapping started at the back of her mind. It kept prodding her brain with the noise. Every few seconds, she would hear a simple tap. As more time passed, it grew stronger and louder. The sound echoed in her ears.

Sasori didn't seem to hear the noise. He was too focused on touching her. His caresses were stroking the fire in her lower abdomen as his hand moved to rest on her inner thigh.

Meanwhile, Sakura was trying to regain control of her body and voice. It was as if her inner self was pushing against a sturdy brick wall. Every time that she pushed, the brick wall wouldn't budge. She imagined a pink-haired girl pounding her fists against the immovable barrier, crying out in frustration and desperation.

The tapping noise was growing louder in her head. Her eyes were moving frantically back and forth in distress. His hand was beginning to explore a part of her that wasn't meant to be taken forcibly. She screamed through her closed lips loud enough to make her dizzy.

Her heart felt like it was going to explode out of her chest.

"Sasori."

At once, Sakura's terror seemed to evaporate. The tingling sensation disappeared, retracting from her nervous system like a snake that unwinds from its prey. She took in a loud, shaky breath from the experience. She watched with relief as Sasori's hands found themselves back in his lap.

"Yes, Itachi?"

Sakura looked at Itachi, who stood in the door frame. His cane was extended out, resting against the floor near the ajar door. His head was turned towards Sasori and Sakura, as if he was looking at them. Sakura had never felt so much relief from seeing anyone. Even if Itachi hadn't witnessed what had happened, at least he was here now. He was the reason that Sasori couldn't venture further.

"Pein wants to speak with you." Itachi murmured quietly.

Sasori's lips formed a thin line. He glanced at Sakura for a moment, longingly and with desire, and then left her side to retreat from the room. Itachi stepped forward into the room to get out of his way. Despite the gesture, Sasori brushed his shoulder against him roughly as he left.

When he was gone, Itachi extended his cane towards the door so that he could feel it and close it. He then turned towards the sound of Sakura's breathing and guided himself over to her. She wondered if he could have sensed her fear before he had entered the room.

"Are you alright?" Sakura was surprised that she had been the one to say those words.

"Yes, I am fine. Sasori has never felt comfortable with my presence. This is natural." He paused for a moment, almost awkwardly. "Are you alright?"

Sakura bit her lip quietly, not able to answer for a moment. She wasn't sure if she should tell him about Sasori. She feared that if she did, Sasori would be punished and he would come back with a vengeance. Sakura shivered at the idea of being touched again. The thought was making her nauseous.

"Uhm-"

"I wish I could have seen you fight. I heard that you did well for your first training session."

Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but ended up smiling before she could reply.

"I don't remember all of it honestly. I'd like to think that I started off strong, but I have no idea how it ended." She looked down at her arms and laugh half-heartedly. "When I look at my injuries, I honestly wonder what happened. I'd like to think I earned these injuries in a respectable way."

Itachi smiled politely in response, "Kisame said that you didn't give up until you passed out. I'd call that a respectable way to end a training session."

"Thank you. One of these days, I hope that I can beat Kisame. I want to prove myself to everyone here."

"I'm sure you will," Itachi said. He then started reaching for the door. As he was opening the door, Sakura felt the sense of security fading away. A feeling of dread consumed her as an image of Sasori popped in her head. She had no desire to be alone with the red-head ever again.

"Ita-"

"Sakura," Itachi turned his head as if to look at her. "If you ever need anything, please feel free to talk to me. Also, let me know if I can do anything to help you with your troubles."

Sakura nodded hesitantly, kind of surprised he would say such a thing. Nonetheless, she felt that she could perhaps trust this man as opposed to Sasori. She did wonder what kind of "troubles" that he had in mind when she spoke to her. Could he mean just her physical injuries or did he mean more than that?

"Y-Yes, of course."

**xxXxx**

_Wham!_

Sasori's body slammed into the hallway wall, a few pictures crashing beside him. He lifted a hand to his lips, wiping away the blood seeping out.

"I know what you did." Deidara spat out at him.

He was still in his pose from punching Sasori in his jaw. Deidara's face was frozen in an angry grimace. It had been a long time since he had felt so possessed by pure rage.

Sasori stared at him for a moment blankly. The two had a stare down for a moment. The longer that Sasori stared at him, the more infuriated that Deidara became.

Then Sasori smirked and Deidara lost it.

Deidara threw another punch, landing it on Sasori's face once more. This time he heard a crack as his fist hit the red-haired man.

"If you knew about it, why didn't you do anything about it? If I recall correctly, Itachi was the one to interrupt my time with Sakura."

Sasori's lips grew into a small smile as he turned towards Deidara. Deidara's upper lip curled in disgust at his partner.

"What is your problem, Sasori? You're not even following Pein's orders anymore, yeah."

A few pieces of plastic fell from Sasori's face as Sasori's smile grew wider. The cracks on his right cheek spread to the bridge of his nose and curled around his jaw line. Sasori's eyes appeared more glassy than normal.

"I could say the same thing to you, Deidara. I've seen what you have done as well," Sasori finally stood, his hand going to his cheek lightly. He brushed his fingertips along the broken edges of his decaying face. As he did, more pieces fell to the ground.

"It makes it more interesting, doesn't it?" He laughed very shortly, breaking off a big piece of his cheek. Deidara could easily see that Sasori's head was hollow on the inside now.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to pardon myself to my room for repairs. I can't let our little experiment see me like this quite yet."

With another short laugh, Sasori tossed the piece of hardened plastic towards Deidara and walked away. Deidara smacked the piece towards the ground with his hand and stared after his partner with a mix of anger and shock.

He then looked down at his gloved hand, palm up.

"Yes…I suppose it does make it more exciting."

Deidara squeezed his hand into a tight fist and threw his arm to the side in one sweeping motion.

"…But that doesn't excuse a single thing that you have done to her!"

**xxXxx**

When Sakura was able to stand for the first time in days, Deidara and Itachi were present to help her out. She teared up as the two men gently held her arms and helped her onto her feet.

Without a second thought, Sakura threw her arms around the both of them. Itachi and Deidara froze, unable to process what was happening. Neither of them had expected this.

She brought them close, her eyes glistening with tears as she visibly shook.

"I'm sorry, guys. I honestly felt like I might stumble. This is so frustrating."

"We understand, Sakura. That last training session took a lot out of you. We're not expecting you to recover within a day, yeah."

She half-smiled at Deidara as they helped her sit on the edge of the bed. She hadn't expected to be bedridden for so long. The lack of activity was slowly eating away at her. On top of that, she didn't like being confined to one place, especially with Sasori roaming around the house.

Sakura hadn't seen him for a few days. The last time he had visited he had merely dropped off food onto her tray and left without saying a single word. He, however, did smile at her in such a way that it made her uncomfortable. There was also something different about him, but she couldn't place it for some reason.

His eyes had been different somehow. It had bothered her enough to look away from him as he placed her plate on the tray. She couldn't even manage to thank him as he left.

"Is there anything that we can do for you right now?" Itachi asked, directing her attention away from her thoughts.

As her gaze met Itachi's dark shades, she noticed Deidara starting towards the door through her peripheral vision. Her head whipped towards him in confusion.

"Do you need to go, Deidara? Are you going to say good-bye, at least?"

He turned around quickly, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

"Well, I just remembered I need to go speak with Pein about an upcoming errand. I don't know if I'll be gone long, but I will definitely try to stop by before I leave."

His eyes grew slightly more serious.

"Please be careful while I'm gone. I wouldn't want to come back to see you stuck in here for even longer."

Itachi raised a curious eyebrow at his words. Sakura bit her bottom lip unconsciously and nodded. Sakura had this weird feeling that Deidara might have found out about Sasori's last real encounter with her. She wondered if she could talk to _him _of all people about it.

"Either way, yeah, I'll be back probably before sunset. Itachi, keep an eye on her for me, will you?"

He smirked at Itachi mischievously until the blind man threw his cane at him. It barely missed Deidara's face as it flew past him and hit the door. Deidara laughed heartedly, saying how he was just kidding as he closed the door behind him. Sakura caught herself giggling softly at Deidara's antics.

"Am I allowed to help you retrieve your cane, Itachi? It'd be good exercise for me to walk over and get it. Deidara is such an asshole for not giving it back to you. He definitely deserved that."

Itachi chuckled softly, nodding his head. "Yes, I think that will be fine. However, let me accompany you just in case your legs become weak again." He then offered his arm towards her, although it was a bit farther than she could reach.

"Itachi, I need you to be a little bit closer. My arms are not as long as I wish they were."

"And unfortunately, my eyes are not as useful as I wish they were." He smiled at her lightly as he moved his arm towards her voice. Itachi moved it slowly towards her until she stopped it with her hand. Shakily, she used him to stand onto her feet again.

"Why don't we have a miraculous medic in the house to solve our issues?" Sakura asked jokingly as she led them towards the cane by the door. He shrugged in response to her question.

"It actually wouldn't be that much of a miracle these days to heal the blind. Most medics are extremely skilled when it comes to using their chakra to heal others. Blindness and damage to the eyes in general can be cured. From what I have heard, it takes a few weeks of intense care for the patient to see even glimpses though. It'd be a long process, but it isn't as miraculous as it would have been decades ago."

Sakura stopped for a moment to look at him. He leaned his head to the side as if to say, "What?"

"If this is true, why haven't you pursued that kind of opportunity?" Sakura gripped him tightly. Her eyes grew wide with excitement as she turned to stare his face. Itachi could feel her almost shaking from the amount of excitement coursing through her body.

"Could you imagine it? In a year or so, you might have your eyesight back! Where can we find a medic to work on your eyes? You could get some well-deserved revenge on Deidara too!" Sakura would have kept talking, but Itachi put a finger to her lips to silence her.

"Calm down, Sakura. Medics like that are few and far between. I'm only aware of a few that can perform such a task and even those medics are too far away from our house." It had been a while since he had seen such childish excitement. If he hadn't silenced her, she might have been on about this subject all day long.

Sakura's eyes darkened in sadness. "Can't any of our friends help us?"

"No one here is skilled in the area of medicinal chakra. If any of our housemates were skilled, I would have already been healed most likely."

Without warning, Sakura abandoned Itachi's side. She let go of his arm and started to walk away from him. He was quite unaware to where she was heading.

"Where are you going?" Itachi called out to her, hesitating whether or not to reach out with his hand. Suddenly, he heard a crash on the ground nearby. He could have sworn it had come from in front of him. "Are you alright?"

Sakura did not answer.

Instead, Sakura struggled back onto her knees with nothing but her sheer will motivating her. She didn't glance back at Itachi as she moved forward towards the door.

Itachi took a few slow, cautious steps forward. He then started moving a bit faster towards the noise of her footsteps. However, before he could get much farther, he felt a hand lightly place itself on his chest. His cane then found itself into his hand.

"Why did you do that? Your wounds haven't healed enough for you to move around on your own. I heard you fall. Did you injure yourself?"

"I'm fine, Itachi." He could heard the smile in her voice as she handed him his cane. Tears were glistening in her eyes, but she knew he couldn't see them. Her fall had definitely not felt good. However, she felt that it was completely necessary to leave Itachi for that moment. She had proven to herself that she could move her body by sheer will.

That wasn't the point of her leaving him though. She had to make sure that her thoughts were her own as she fetched the cane. Sakura didn't want the touch of one of her housemates helping her make her decisions. However, now, she knew that the desire inside of her heart was true. It might have been inside of her all along without her knowing.

As Itachi had been informing Sakura about medicinal chakra and its uses, she had realized that she wanted to become an excellent medic. Some kind of unexplainable compassion had filled her when she looked at Itachi. She wondered if this was how it felt to want to help someone. She wholeheartedly wanted to help people, especially Itachi.

"I want to heal you, Itachi." Sakura cried out happily. "I want to be the one to cure you of your blindness if no one else can! And I know if I pursue this training, it will get me to the point where I can use medicinal chakra."

Sakura took his free hand in hers and gripped it tightly. "What do you say? How does that sound, Itachi?!"

Itachi didn't say anything for a moment. He merely bent his head down towards hers as if to look at her. Sakura stared at him with wishful eyes, her heart going out to him. She could only hope that he would take up her offer.

"It sounds wonderful." Itachi murmured in response. Sakura smiled softy at him before hugging him without a second thought. He grunted in surprise as he was embraced. He was suddenly aware that this small girl really meant her words. She really did feel the kind of compassion that a medic would have in their hearts.

He sighed quietly in response. It had been a while since he had seen someone in this household that actually cares for his well-being. If someone acted in such a way, it was in front of Sakura. It was only a ruse to make her comfortable. Otherwise, no one truly cared whether he died or not. Before Sakura, the last people to care about his fate was the family he had left in another town.

Itachi hesitantly wrapped his arms around her, his arms barely grazing against her skin.

"Before we can try to heal me though, let's focus on healing you first." He said quietly. "That and we need you to get farther in your training before we can attempt anything."

"I'm promising you right now, Itachi."

Sakura leaned away from him, barely grabbing onto him. She was strictly holding onto him for her own balance. Determination was consuming her eyes as she spoke to the blind man.

"I _will _cure your blindness. I promise you that."

Itachi's lips grew into a small smile.

"And then we'll work on you growing longer arms, right?"

Sakura beamed at him and said,

"Well if you're not blind anymore, I won't have to worry about that, now will I?"

**xxXxx**

Shortly after Itachi helped her back into bed, he had to leave almost immediately. He had acted like there had been someone calling his name. Sometimes, Sakura honestly wondered if she was part deaf. Did they seriously hear something that she couldn't?

After he bid her farewell and closed the door, Sakura heard the lock click just like old times. It kind of surprised her since she hadn't heard any of her housemates lock her in a few days. However, it could have been because she couldn't have moved towards the door if she had tried.

Sakura sighed heavily, leaning back against her pillow. Her legs ached from her fall earlier now. Well, it hurt like a bitch when it first happened, but Itachi had luckily distracted her from the pain. At least now she had more to look forward to when she fully healed. Her stupid legs wouldn't hurt anymore and she would be able to train again!

Looking down at her hands resting on in her lap, Sakura 'hn'd' out of curiosity as she turned her palms towards her. She started to stare more intensely at her hands as she tried to sense the chakra within her. Almost subconsciously, she could feel the blue aura starting to awaken inside of her body.

She was trying to think how she could use such a power to heal someone. How could she change the structure of the chakra for medicinal purposes? Did it depend on how she moved it as an entity? How much chakra was needed to heal and at what point should one stop to prevent over exerting yourself?

It was obvious that medicinal uses of chakra would take time to learn, let alone master. It didn't matter to her though. As long as she could control it eventually, it wouldn't matter how long it would take or how hard it would be. Sakura wanted to give aid to others, especially if it were to save someone's life or to save someone from a chronic condition like Itachi's.

She already knew that she subconsciously understood what chakra was and how it could aid in battle. Sakura was pretty sure that the first punched she had landed on Kisame had been laced with chakra. How had she done that without thinking about it? Could she make chakra become second nature for use in the medical field too?

Her mind then diverted to her right hand. As the scientific questions had been running rampant in her head, the blue aura that signified chakra was glowing in her palm. Sakura's narrowed in determination as she attempted to stretch the chakra over one of her fingers. As if it had been destined to be, the chakra stretched from her palm to her index finger's tip.

For the next few minutes, Sakura tried stretching her chakra to her remaining fingers. It took several different tries, but she finally completed her objective. Her hand was enveloped in light blue chakra. The way that the chakra molded to her hand reminded her of the bottom a hand resting upon the surface of water. It moved ever so slightly along her hand but it didn't leave her.

She stared at it for a few minutes in awe before smiling to herself.

She was definitely going to achieve her goal.

"Just watch, Itachi. I'll heal you in no time."

She then turned her right hand and placed it on her left side. The blue glowed from between her hand and the bandages adorning her.

"But first…you're right. I need to heal myself."

**xxXxx**

"I'm impressed, Itachi."

Pein looked up from the open book on his desk he had been reading. He propped his elbows upon the desk counter, lacing his fingers together. His hands rested just below Pein's nose.

The blind man didn't say anything in response as he closed the door behind him. He was still taken aback by the encounter with Deidara in the hallway. The blond had been in a hurry and had rushed past him as if he hadn't seen Itachi. Itachi had to catch himself clumsily on a nearby wall to prevent himself from falling.

He had sensed a feeling of dread coming from his housemate.

"I didn't think you'd actually implant the desire of becoming a medic into Sakura's mind." Pein was watching Itachi carefully as he spoke. "This will definitely speed up our plans."

Pein's body disappeared and reappeared next to Itachi, his hand placed gently on the blind man's shoulder. Itachi coolly turned towards Pein as his mind was filled with the image of Sakura's room. It was as if he was in her room again, standing right next to her. From what he could see, Sakura was trying to practice with her chakra. Her hand was on her side, glowing blue.

To his distaste, Sakura bore a grimace of determination as she failed her first attempt to heal herself. Her first try resulted in crimson bleeding through her bandages. She winced, grinding her teeth. It appeared as though she wanted to make herself into her first patient.

"How long did it take to implant the idea, Itachi? I noticed how you two were touching for at least five minutes." Itachi didn't answer the shorter man. He knew that Pein could read the top surface of his thoughts.

"You don't have to be silent around me, Itachi. You don't even have to wear those ridiculous shades around me either."

"I prefer to stay in character." Itachi murmured quietly. Pein removed his hand from Itachi's shoulder and sauntered back towards his desk. He seemed unaffected by Itachi's reply.

"I suppose it doesn't matter as long as Sakura believes it. Either way, we need to move forward with our plan."

"I'm aware of that. If Sakura actually perfects her technique on her own, we won't have to worry about wasting much time proceeding forward."

Pein nonchalantly picked up the book in front of him and held it up by the spine. He skimmed the pages for a few seconds before glancing at Itachi. Without so much as a warning, Pein slammed the book shut with his hand and threw it towards Itachi.

Casually, Itachi caught the book with his free hand, holding it mere inches from his face. He turned the book in his hand so he could read over the cover before tucking it under his arm.

"You didn't have to propose the idea, did you?"

Itachi's face was expressionless as he turned away from his leader. Pein noticed the flash of crimson for a moment as Itachi rotated his head. Pein's tongue ran over his upper front row teeth once thoughtfully. He then hn'd quietly before walking over to a nearby shelf and grabbing another book.

**xxXxx**

"I figured this might help you, Sakura."

Sakura looked up her wound, unaware that Itachi had reentered her bedroom. She had been so obsessed with her practice that she hadn't even heard him open the door. She sheepishly smiled at him, unsure if she was in trouble or not.

"Don't worry. I'm not mad at you for trying to pursue your dream." Itachi slowly made his way over her bed, feeling the floor in front of him with his cane. He placed a dark green, hard bound book on her nightstand. She glanced over at it, reading the cover as she tried to put pressure on the bleeding.

To her surprise, it was a book meant for beginners in the medicinal chakra field. She laughed in relief, unable to contain her happiness.

"That really ought to help me. Thank you, Itachi." She tried to reach for the book with her left hand, but in turn stretched her wound too much. Sakura bent over, freezing up in pain.

Itachi gently settled her back against the pillow, clumsily reaching for the medical book as he did so. "Please don't overexert yourself." Sakura nodded in response, weakly smiling in response.

The blind man handed her the book and smiled politely in farewell.

Before he could make it out into the hallway, she called to him,

"Where did you find this?"

Itachi merely answered, "You'd be surprised what kind of junk you can find around this house. The land owner has all sorts of things scattered around the house. You can call him a pack rat."

And with that, Itachi left.

As Sakura examined the book's cover, she sighed softly. It had been nice of Itachi to find such a book for her. However, her mind immediately halted for a moment. She looked for brail on any part of the book and to her surprise, she could not find any.

How in the world had he known what kind of book it was?

She shooed the thought away. He might have asked one of the housemates to help him find some sort of medical book. She mustn't think of him as a dishonest person. In fact, he had probably been the most trustworthy friends she had acquired here. Funnily enough though, Sakura had barely talked to him. It was just a feeling that she had.

When she opened the hardback, she skimmed over the first few pages. She landed in the acknowledgements section. For some reason, a certain proper noun stuck out to her. It was as if she had read the word before although she didn't understand its meaning.

She slowly read the word aloud, "Konoha."

A few vague images passed through her head when she tried to picture the word. A boy with spiky blond hair in an orange jumpsuit brought another sulky looking boy next to him with an arm. The other boy had raven hair and wore almost a permanent annoyed look on his face. He wasn't pleased by the first boy's embrace.

A one-eyed man stood behind them, enjoying the sight before them. He obviously found it amusing to watch the two interact.

A separate image came to her mind that showed an elderly man in robes talking to a voluptuous, young blond woman.

Sakura didn't know what exactly to make of the images, but shrugged. She could always ask Itachi or one of the others about Konoha. It might actually be a place of importance if it was listed in the acknowledgements. For all she knew, it could be the best place to study in the medical area.

She didn't let the thoughts bother her as she continued into further pages, holding her wound even more tightly. By the end of the day, she wanted to learn on how to at least seal up her mistake!

* * *

Within the first three weeks of studying the book, Sakura had finished reading the entire volume. In the first few hours of reading, she had even learned to seal her wound although it resembled the work of an amateur. It was one of those things that needed to be dealt with before she could continue on with her studying. As much as she would have liked to bleed all over the sheets as she worked, she decided to skip right to dealing with the issue at hand.

With her amateur medical knowledge, she proceeded to speed up her healing process. The only part that she was nervous about dealing with was her skull fracture. She had already healed everything else beforehand over the last week or so. Sakura could even walk perfectly now. Well, aside from the lack of balance in her head.

None of her housemates really visited her during this time. Deidara never came to see her before he left for his errand. She hadn't even bothered to really worry about him though. She knew he could take care of himself and whatever errand must have been important to be gone so long.

Itachi came by to deliver her food every day and he would strike up a conversation with her every once in a while. She didn't pay him much attention either. She was polite enough to talk for a few minutes before reverting back to the bookworm that she was. Sakura knew that he wouldn't take offense to her lack of interest in talking with him. He already knew why she was working so hard to get through the book.

If it helped her medical skills, it would help him in the end. He was actually quite amused that she would eat and read at the same time rather than talk to him. She would scarf down an apple or a bowl of rice as she read thoroughly. It was a relief to see that she still had the motivation that she developed about a month ago.

Back onto the subject of housemates, Sasori and Hidan didn't even turn up during that time. It was probably a good thing since Sasori would have most definitely distracted her from her studies. And as for Hidan, she probably would have torn her wounds open again trying to get out of bed to try and kick his ass. It was as if her studying had been graced by gods. The amount of peace and quiet around her had been extraordinary.

At the end of her session, Sakura had decided to take up practicing as often as she could before she returned back to training with Kisame. One of the days that she had taken to start restoring her skull back to full health, Itachi had graced her with his presence. Although she was practicing, she was glad to have the man's company.

"I don't think I have ever head of someone practicing so diligently like this. You seem possessed."

"Possessed. Obsessed. Fixated. Consumed. It doesn't matter if I'm actually getting somewhere, does it?"

"Someone might think you're insane if you start to talk like that."

Sakura looked up from her chakra embodied hand to squint at him suspiciously.

"You don't think I'm insane, do you?"

Itachi shifted in the chair that was next to her bed. He acted like he had no idea what she was talking about. He tapped his cane absentmindedly beside him.

"Itachi…"

"Some would consider it insane to pursue the endeavor of curing blindness. Am I insane for believing it to be possible?"

Sakura's hand stopped glowing for a moment as she processed his words. "It_ is _possible, is it not?" She asked slowly in a perplexed manner. She would be rather upset if she had been led to believe that curing blindness was feasible when it was actually false information.

"Of course it is." Itachi noticed her relax and then sigh in relief. "After all, anything is technically conceivable."

Within a few seconds, Sakura was out of bed and gripping Itachi's collar heatedly. Her eyes flashed at him.

"Are you telling me that this is a fool's errand?"

Itachi easily brushed her hand to the side. He had expected this kind of reaction from her and he was prepared for it.

"What else are you going to fool me into doing, Itachi? Are you going to lie to me to get in my pants too?"

On second thought, Sakura had wished she hadn't added that last part. She actually didn't know why the words flew out of her mouth. The words had rushed out before she could bite her tongue.

Itachi hadn't expected her last question. He leaned his head to the side in confusion. For the first time ever since he met the girl, he felt concern arise within him. His eyes narrowed.

"What are you talking –"

"Don't change the subject, goddamn it." Sakura was becoming more emotional as the minutes progressed. It had been nearly a month since she had spoken so passionately to him. Itachi felt almost unsettled by the tornado of emotions whipping around her. He was not used to someone being so expressive.

"I want you to tell me whether or not it is possible to cure blindness." Her lips quivered slightly as she spoke. Her emerald eyes glistened as she sunk to her knees and leaned away from him. "I want you to tell me the truth, Itachi. I hate being lied too."

Itachi pondered what she said for a moment or two. He then stood up and knelt beside her. A hand lightly wrapped around her shoulders and brought her close to him.

"I wish to apologize, Sakura," He whispered quietly, "I'm not certain whether it is possible or not. I have heard distant rumors that it is a feasible concept, but I don't have any evidence to claim them as true. I do, however, believe that if anyone were to fulfill such an insane dream, it would certainly be you."

Sakura didn't know how to respond. She wanted to pull away from him out of anger, but at the same time, she wanted to hug him for telling her the absolute truth. She settled on the latter, wrapping her arms around him in defeat and cried silently into his chest.

Itachi let her lean against him like that for a few minutes. He supposed that he was meant to feel guilt right now, but he couldn't muster such a feeling. He had done many things that could have caused guilt in his lifetime, but this was not one of them. He did, however, feel respectable about being honest with her.

"Who were you talking about earlier?" Itachi finally murmured. He already knew Sasori would be the culprit. He still remembered that day, although vaguely. He had sensed Sasori's chakra nearby followed by Sakura's distress. He had had this weird feeling that Sasori might try to violate Sakura. To his disgust, Itachi had been right.

Sakura acted as though she didn't want to travel down that path. She did not want to suffer the consequences of accusing Sasori of his dishonor. Itachi made her lean away from him.

"Tell me now, Sakura. I answered your questions. Now answer mine." Itachi asked coolly, "Who were you speaking of?"

Sakura bit her lip, but finally answered, "Sasori."

Itachi frowned in response as he helped Sakura back to bed. She kept glancing at him like a child that had done something wrong.

"What are you going to do—"

"I don't want you to worry about that. I want you to either keep practicing or rest for the remainder of the day."

Itachi started to walk away from her bed, almost forgetting his cane. It struck her odd that he would forget such a thing, but she figured that he was too angry to think about it. He was walking so confidently and with certainty that it made her uncomfortable.

"Itachi, I need you to promise me something before you leave."

Itachi paused as he was shutting the door. His hesitation was a sign for her to speak.

Sakura twirled one of her hair strands around her index finger nervously. She finally managed to set her gaze on his face.

"I want you to promise that you will tell me everything about the word "Konoha" when you return."

Itachi didn't say a thing for a short moment. She wondered what might have been going through his head, but he acted before she could start exploring the possibilities.

"I promise."

With those being his final words, Itachi closed the door behind him.

Sakura looked down at her hands, trying to debate whether or not to start practicing again or to lay in bed with her thoughts. She honestly wanted to do neither. She wished that someone was here to keep her company and distract her from the recent turn of events. She had no desire to think, sleep, or work.

As if the gods had heard her thoughts, Deidara burst through the door unexpectedly.

He looked frantic as he entered the room. He looked all around as if looking for something in particular before finally settling his gaze on Sakura. He breathed a sigh of relief as if a giant burden had been lifted off his shoulders.

Sakura's eyes brightened up for him. Her tears had already dried thankfully so that Deidara couldn't see the pain that she had just been in. The last thing that she needed was another friend worrying about her.

Deidara happily smiled at her reaction to his presence.

"Miss me, yeah?"

Sakura merely nodded and then asked, "Where have you been all this time, Deidara? I didn't even get a farewell from you."

Deidara sheepishly grinned at her. He took a seat on the edge of the bed and looked her wounds over before answering, "I'm sorry. There was an urgent errand I needed to tend to right away, but never mind me. Look at you! You're almost healed up completely, yeah!"

Sakura glanced down at her healthier body as well before smiling at Deidara. "You'll never guess what happened." She took a hold of his hand elatedly as she bounced her spot a few times. Deidara shook his head and laughed at her antics.

"I have no idea. It's been a while."

She stared at him eagerly, hoping that he would at least make a guess. It abruptly clicked her mind that she didn't feel cloth on his hands like usual. She looked down in surprise.

Deidara noticed too and quickly tried to retract his hands. However, Sakura was not having any of that and grabbed onto his wrists.

"Why are you always hiding your hands with these gloves? Do you need healing or something?"

Deidara anxiously tried to keep getting his hands out of her grip.

"Sakura, no. You really shouldn't—"

However, before Deidara could warn her, Sakura flipped his palms up towards her. She was slightly taken aback for a moment before any realization set in. Her smile fell from her face as she had tried to bite back the scream building in her throat.

The free hand that she had already glowing green chakra faltered instantly.

As if mocking her, a mouth on each hand moved on its own accord and both tongues waved wildly at her. The mouths grinned at her then with a full set of teeth as if to say, "Well, it's about time we were introduced."

* * *

**A/N: There you have it, guys! Another chapter that has finally been shelled out. I know it's actually a lot to digest. I just hope that everyone enjoys it. The next chapter may finally turn this into an M-rated story. Tell me what you think!**

**Enjoy the rest of your summer!**

**SharinganAnbuSakura**


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